A Silver Lining for Derpy
by Teyeson Bee
Summary: This is the story of a young girl named Derpy who, for a majority of her life, has had a dark cloud following her everywhere from being mocked for her deformity. But when she meets an optimistic young man, she might find the silver lining in her clouds yet!
1. Every Dark Cloud

8:00 am. That was what time the alarm clock said as it started going off with a loud beeping noise. In a small house on a cloud, overlooking the town of Ponyville, where lived a race of human-pony hybrids, there lived a tired hand that reached up and turned off the alarm. And that hand was connected to Ponyville's lovable mailgirl, Derpy. Everybody in town knew Derpy, why you could say that she was quite popular around the town. No matter where she went, she always had a pleasant attitude that cheered the townspeople up in an instant. Her demeanor was so bubbly, that nobody could not smile even the tiniest bit. That's what her special talent was after all. That's why her cutie mark was bubbles.

A cutie mark was a marking that all people got on the back of their right hand when they discovered their special talent, and as said before, Derpy's was having a bubbly attitude. She was also kind, considerate, and a little quirky at times. She was a pegasus-girl with straight blonde hair that came down to the bottom of her neck, and she always wore a gray, button-up dress shirt with matching jeans. Her eyes were as yellow as her hair, and if there was one thing that pointed Derpy out among others, it was her eyes. Not just because of their color, but because of their abnormal structure. You see, Derpy had a lazy eye since she was born that had slightly altered her sight. But at this point in her life, Derpy didn't care at all. It just added on to her quirky demeanor.

Derpy sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. "It's gonna be a good day!" she thought as she jumped out of bed. After a nice shower and putting on her uniform, she grabbed a blueberry muffin (her favorite food) off the table, picked up her mailbag, and zoomed out of the house. As she flew through the puffy white clouds and headed towards the post office, Derpy couldn't help but laugh as the feeling of passing through the clouds tickled her face. She soared down from out of the clouds and landed on the stone streets of Ponyville, where she entered the post office to get her daily route.

Now, I probably know what you're thinking. What an upbeat girl! She seems so nice! She's definitely a lovable one! Well, you'd be right. But, believe it or not, it wasn't always that way. Not many knew how Derpy ended up where she is today. Many just assume that she had a wonderful childhood and just grew up like any other kid. Hate to burst your bubble, but they'd be wrong. Derpy didn't always have the bubbly attitude she has today. Sure, it may have started out that way in her much younger years, but as time went on for her, she started getting into problems and tragedies that she would never forget. There was a time when Derpy was...depressed. And if things didn't happened how they did, the Derpy of today wouldn't be the same.

In the beginning, like with any child, there was a father and a mother. Iron Lung and Blueberry Muffin were their names, and they were at completely different ends of the spectrum. Iron Lung was a tough, hardworking bulk of a man who worked at the local steel mill. He wasn't the softest when it came to demeanor, so that's where Blueberry came in. She was the best baker in all of Cloudsdale, and one of the sweetest women you'd ever meet. The two met when Blueberry was catering for the mill, and believe it or not, they...didn't seem to get along. But over time, as you probably guessed, they fell in love and married a few years later. Then when Blueberry announced that she was pregnant with Derpy, things seemed to have gone well...for a while. One month before Derpy was born, Iron Lung was in a tragic accident at the mill and passed away on the way to the hospital. It was a sad day for Blueberry, being without her husband and best friend, but she never let it get her down all the time. One of her best character traits was her optimism and the ability to always see a bright side. She knew that the two would meet again someday, and that even though he wasn't with her physically, Iron Lung would be with her spiritually and mentally.

The day that Blueberry had anticipated finally came on the morning of a Monday in March. She gave birth to a little pegasus-girl and she couldn't have been happier. When examining the baby though, it was noted that she was born with abnormal eyes. One looking normal, while the other looking up. The doctors worried about what this would do to the young one, but Blueberry didn't mind in the slightest. As she held her giggling baby in her arms, she decided on a name that would match her. A name that defined her and that she would be proud of because it said that she was perfect just the way she was. She went with the name Derpy.

As Derpy grew up, Blueberry did an exceptional job in taking care of her. She loved her like no other and taught her kindness and optimism. When Derpy entered kindergarten, she made her first friend in Rain Storm, another pegasus-girl who's father was a famous weatherman. Rain has a slightly larger overbite than others, and, seeing Derpy's own physical abnormality, they hit it off right away. The two became inseparable for several years, even when they entered grade school. However, as they grew older and entered fourth grade, Derpy began to get more friends than Rain. Maybe it was because the kids saw Rain's overbite a bit more distracting and less cool than Derpy's eyes, but because of this, Rain started to grow distance from Derpy. Then if that wasn't bad enough for Rain, by the time they entered fifth grade, Derpy had gotten her cutie mark before her. Derpy had been showing her kindness and optimism taught by her mother for years, and it wasn't until fifth grade when someone labeled her personality as "bubbly." Derpy loved that expression of it and realized that THAT was her talent; to show others her bubbly attitude. That was when the bubbles appeared on her hand. Derpy was ecstatic and her friends were all happy for her, except one. With the jealousy that came from having less friends than Derpy and from not being first to get her cutie mark, Rain had completely blocked herself out of her old friend's life and had grown cold towards her. Though Derpy tried to make up with her, Rain wouldn't listen and stopped talking to her. This broke Derpy's heart over the loss of her best friend, but with the encouragement from Blueberry, Derpy continued to show her kindness.

Now, if that was all that happened during Derpy's childhood, maybe she wouldn't wound up differently by high school. Unfortunately, things took a turn for the worse. After Derpy had entered middle school, she started getting more clumsy. She would start tripping over things and running into others. She didn't know why, until her mother took her to the doctor. Apparently, as Derpy's eyes were starting to mature, her lazy eye was a lot slower in the process than the good eye. This meant that Derpy's sight in her lazy eye would never be as good as her other eye, and would cause her sight to be cut in half. Though Derpy worried about this, Blueberry told her not to worry, and that the eye would not change who Derpy was as a person. Derpy took this into account and ignored it. Then one day, when Derpy was in the seventh grade, she accidentally fell in the cafeteria and caused a chain reaction that resulted in a calamity of food flying all over the place. As everyone looked at Derpy, a familiar face stood up and said, "Well, looks like Derp-face has some cleaning to do." The whole cafeteria broke out in laughter. Derpy looked at the girl who said those words, and to her surprise, it was Rain!

Her appearance had changed since the last time they spoke. Rain now had straight brown hair that flowed down to her waist, unlike her old curly locks. Most surprising of all, her teeth were straight. Apparently, she talked her dad into paying for the surgery needed to fix her overbite. Derpy looked at her and noticed the new smug, "I'm now better than you" look she had on her face and couldn't believe that she had changed so much. The girl who was once a great friend was now the one who urged others to make fun of her. As Derpy looked around at the kids howling with laughter and calling her "Derp-face" and "Klutzy", all she could do was run out and cry. And it just kept going from then on. Everyday, Rain had something to say about Derpy's deformity and everybody laughed. Her old friends from grade school were too embarrassed to talk to her, worrying that they would get ridiculed too. Every night, Derpy would cry into her mother's arms, telling her of all that was happening.

"My dear Derpy," Blueberry would say, "don't you pay no mind to what they say. They just don't understand. You are a sweet, bubbly, optimistic girl, and your eyes do not define who you are. Keep your chin up and don't lose hope."

The same thing happened every week. Derpy would get ridiculed, she'd come home, cry, and get comforted by her mom. Blueberry was the only means for Derpy to feel comforted. She was the only one to give Derpy the motivation she needed to carry one and try to keep being bubbly. Unfortunately, with everything that was already happening in her life, nothing could prepare Derpy for what series of events happened next.

Blueberry was dying.

A few months after Derpy moved into her freshman year of high school, Blueberry was struck with tuberculosis. Through the efforts from the doctors, medicine, and intensive treatment, she was able to stay alive for a few months. However, the disease began to really take its toll during that time, up to the point where Blueberry couldn't even stand up straight anymore. Then, one rainy night, it came to the point where the doctors finally said that there was no more they could do and that she only had a short time left. Derpy's insides turned to pudding as the doctors gave her the news, and as she sat at the side of her mother's bed, she couldn't hold back her tears.

"Now, now sweetie," Blueberry said softly as she placed her hand on Derpy's cheek, "it's going to be alright."

"No it's not Mommy!" Derpy said through her tears. "You CAN'T die! I need you!"

"Don't worry Derpy," Blueberry smiled. "I'm not scared."

"I AM!" Derpy shouted as the tears flooded down her cheeks even more. "Please don't leave me alone! I don't want to be alone!"

A tear trickled from Blueberry's eye as she took her daughter's hand. "Oh Derpy. I won't leave you. Even if I leave this world physically, I will ALWAYS be with you. All you have to do is look for me and I'll be there, watching over you." She stopped to cough. "Just...just promise me something Derpy."

Derpy focused on her mother's face as she spoke. Derpy could tell that her voice was getting weaker by the second. "Don't...don't forget what I taught you. Never lose that famous attitude of yours. Y-your cloud may seem dark right now, but remember; every cloud has a silver lining. Your life WILL get better, but you have to work at it. Your bubbly attitude is your best weapon against the struggles in life. Always look for a b-bright side, never give up, and always remember; I love you and will ALWAYS be proud of you. I will always be...always be proud...proud of...

At that moment, Derpy felt her mother's hand grow cold as it slipped from her grasp. Her face showed a soft smile as her eyes closed. Derpy started to cry harder as she placed her head on her late mother's stomach. Blueberry Muffin had passed.

"I love you too Mommy," Derpy whispered through her sorrow.

After her mother's death, Derpy was moved to the Cloudsdale Foster Home where she stayed until she turned 18. Derpy also learned that both of her parents had a big life insurance policy and when she turned 18, the money would go to Derpy. That didn't help her feel better though. Derpy had lost her mother; the only person who ever provided her comfort. I wish I could say things at school went better, but I would be lying. Rain's assault on Derpy didn't falter for a minute. She would stir up a crowd to laugh whenever Derpy would trip or bump into something. Those who didn't laugh kept their distance, out of fear of being teased as well. Derpy never felt more alone in her life. Her evenings turned into crying into her pillow and not speaking to anyone. Through the years, all the ridicule and harassment took its toll as Derpy began to grow more and more depressed. Then one day, Derpy had had enough of it.

Deciding that crying wasn't helping and that there was no point anymore, she just stopped. Not just the crying. She stopped feeling. The depression had run so deep, she turned into an emotionless statue. Her trust in others had completely faded as well, seeing enough heartbreak from people pretending to be friends just to set her up to make her look ridiculous. Derpy had cut the entire world out of her life, and just lived it as she wanted to. After she turned 18, Derpy left the foster home with her parents' life insurance money and rented an apartment close to the school. Spending the entire summer by herself, Derpy just saw the upcoming school year as another friendless year of ridicule and harassment, and she just didn't care anymore. She didn't think it, but Derpy NEEDED someone. Someone to be there for her and save her from herself. Someone to be her silver lining in life.

And THAT is where our story begins.


	2. Enter the Lining

In a small apartment room not three blocks from the high school, an alarm clock started to go off. The time on it read 7:00 am as it beeped annoyingly. A tired hand reached over and turned it off as the owner of the hand sat up. Derpy rubbed her eyes, yawned, and stared into open space with an emotionless look on her face, a look that said, "Who cares anymore?" After a hot shower, brushing of hair, putting on clothes, and a muffin breakfast, Derpy stood at the door. In her mind, she thought, "Is it really worth it anymore? Should I even be a little bit excited that this is my senior year?" The thought quickly faded as she remembered what awaited her when she would arrive. The tense trying of not being clumsy, the feeling of solitude and being alone, and worst of all, another year of harassment from Rain Storm and her new "groupies." Ever since Rain became the new "queen bee" at school, she has bought her way up the social ladder, intimidated everyone to praise her, and got herself her own gang.

 _"Maybe she'll be different this year,"_ Derpy optimistic side said. _"Maybe she'll remember the good old days and ask to be friends again."_

 _"Yeah,"_ Derpy's depressed side chimed in, _"and maybe everyone will decide that deformed eyes are the new 'It' thing and make you the next homecoming queen. Get a clue Derpy. Nothing's going to be different this year."_

Derpy sighed as the depressed side took over. Ever since she had decided to cut everyone out of her life, a depressed side was formed, and over time, the optimistic and bubbly side of Derpy began to shrinking more and more. Now, even though she would try and stay positive, her depressed side always had a retort, and she just gave up. Derpy grabbed her bag and started for the door when she suddenly remembered that she forgot to brush her teeth. She headed for the bathroom, accidentally bumping the corner of the doorway in the process, and opened the medicine cabinet. She grabbed her toothbrush and reached for the toothpaste. As she pulled her arm away though, her hand hit the bottom of the shelf, causing everything on it to fall into the sink. Derpy let out a frustrated groan as she started to clean up everything. She was putting the last of the stuff back in the cabinet when something caught her eye. An old bottle of pills her mother used to take when she was sick. Derpy kept them after her death as a nice last reminder of her. Unfortunately, all it did was remind her how her mom died. Derpy took the bottle and looked at the expiration date on the bottom. They were 3 YEARS expired. Suddenly, a thought crept into Derpy's head.

 _"Y'know, you're well aware that this year is guaranteed to be like the others; full of solitude and ridicule. Is it really worth it? You could end it right here if you wanted to. You could be reunited with your mom AND meet your dad. You wouldn't be alone anymore. No more ridicule. No more solitude. All you would have to do is chug a handful and-"_

 _"STOP RIGHT THERE!"_ Derpy's optimistic side interrupted. _"How could even THINK about doing that? Your mother would be ashamed! It doesn't have to end like this!"_

Before she knew it, Derpy found herself locked in a battle between her two sides.

 _"You really expect things to get better? It's never going to end!"_

 _"You don't know that! There's always a chance that something will be different. Remember; every cloud has a silver lining."_

 _"There IS no silver lining! If things haven't changed after all this time, they're not going to change now."_

 _"How do you know? Derpy, you can't give into this. At least go to school TODAY. Give optimism a chance."_

 _"Alright, and after today shows that nothing has changed for the better, then what?"_

 _"One step at a time."_

Derpy put the bottle away and went back to brushing her teeth. Derpy was going to give optimism one last chance to show that it still worked. She would go to school today. If she came home just as depressed if not more than when she came in, then that was it. No more hesitation, and no more anything. After she finished, Derpy made her way out the door and made her way for school. When she at her first class of the day, she did what she had done for the past few years; find a seat and keep to self. So that's what she did. Derpy sat down at a desk in the back and looked around at her fellow seniors talking to one another. Although it was apparent that they saw Derpy, they hardly paid her any mind whatsoever. Derpy was used to it though, so she just kept to herself. She was hoping that she could go without any harassment for the day, but just as she thought that, who would walk in but Rain Storm. Derpy moaned and covered her face, hoping she wouldn't be noticed.

"Well well well," said the familiar smug voice.

She noticed.

Derpy looked up to see Rain's conceited grin hovering above her. She was wearing a pressed blue blouse with a striped skirt and high heel boots to match and her hair was tied back in a ponytail, making her known as the "queen bee" of the school.

Rain turned to her groupies and said, "Look who it is girls. The lazy-eyed pegasissy in its natural habitat; solitude."

The groupies laughed and even some of the classmates nearby let out a little chuckle. Derpy just rolled her eyes and looked away.

"Make sure to approach with caution though," Rain continued. "One wrong slip, and the whole school with fall."

Another laugh came from the students. Rain would've continued on, but the teacher walked in and everyone took their seats. As she thought, no one sat beside Derpy. Once again, she was used to this and just learned to not care.

"Good morning seniors!" the teacher announced. "I'm your homeroom teacher, Mr. Aero. I hope you all had a good summer and are ready to tackle the books once again. First, a few announcements. First off, the student award categories have been chosen and even though the results aren't until the end of the year, students can start entering their names for nominations starting next week."

The student awards were a year-long event for each grade. Students would vote all year long for categories like "Best Dressed" or "Most Likely to Succeed" and awards were given out to the winners. Derpy didn't care though. She never even was nominated before, so why should she care now? Rain, on the other hand, won the "Most Popular" award three years in a row, so of course she thought that it was the best thing since sliced bread.

"And on a second note," Mr. Aero continued, "we have a new student joining us this year. He came all the way from Baltimare, so let's give him a warm welcome."

The door opened and in walked in a pegasus-boy about 4" 5' with short, silver-colored, ruffled-looking hair. He wore a tinted yellow sweatshirt and had a pleasant smile spread across his face. Derpy looked up from her desk to see him, but only for a second before drawing her eyes back down. When the boy spoke, he had a hint of joy in his voice.

"Nice to meet you all. My name's Silver Lining."

Derpy perked up after hearing him introduce himself. Did she just hear what she thought she heard? The guy's name was Silver Lining. Was it just by chance? Could this mean something? Derpy's optimistic side started to show itself, until it was cut off by the depression saying, "Nothing but a coincidence." Derpy's enthusiasm faded as she went back to her desk.

"Alright Silver...can I call you Silver?" Mr. Aero asked. Silver nodded. "Sit wherever you'd like."

Silver started making his way back through the rows of desks trying to find a spot. Derpy wasn't paying attention, but she heard the footsteps coming closer and closer toward the back. Soon, she saw the bottoms of his tennis shoes as he stopped by her row.

"I wouldn't sit there if I were you," Rain called back smugly. "Catastrophe has been known to happen around her."

The class giggled as Derpy started to blush. Just like Rain to talk someone out of associating with her. What would happen next? The guy would take her word for it and just move somewhere else? Well, to her and Rain's surprise, he took a seat right next to Derpy.

"That's fine," he said happily. "I haven't gotten my daily dose of catastrophe yet. No time like the present though."

Derpy stared at him blankly. Was she supposed to take that as teasing, or was he being serious? This was the first time that someone didn't take Rain's word for it when she warned them about her. Derpy wasn't the only one confused though. Rain was pretty surprised and even seemed a little bit offended that someone didn't listen to her; the most popular senior in class.

"Whatever weirdo," Rain scoffed as she turned to face the teacher. Derpy snapped out of her confusion and faced forward as well. Whatever just happened, it didn't seem to matter anymore. The rest of the day was just as Derpy thought it would be; solitude and harassment. Derpy spent the rest of her classes in the back and spent lunches by herself as she always did. She would get the occasional mocking of Rain in the halls in between classes, mostly after Derpy tripped or bumped into a wall. It always seemed that no matter when she tripped or did anything clumsy, Rain was always nearby to make a remark. As the day went on, all Derpy could think about was what she was going to do after school. That one deciding factor on continuing through this life, or just giving up for good. Derpy wanted to stay optimistic, she really wanted to, but it was looking more and more bleak for her every minute.

After the last bell rang and the students departed for home, Derpy knew that Rain would be meeting with her outside to give some of her final thoughts of the day. Sure enough, as she walked out the door and passed by the Cloudsdale High flagpole, there she was with her smug anticipated grin. Derpy took a deep breath and told herself, "Let's just get this over with. It'll be the LAST time!"

"Hey there Derp-face," Rain sniggered as she walked up to Derpy. "I was just talking to the girls, wondering how a person like you can get through one day. It must be SO HARD to deal with it. Y'know, having freak eyes and a clumsy attitude to match. I know I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

The groupies laughed as Derpy just looked down at the ground to not let Rain look at her hurting eyes. With every insult Rain threw out at her, Derpy's optimism shrank more and more. Finally, it just vanished, and depressed Derpy had taken over.

"Nothing has changed," Derpy thought as Rain continued her assault. "It's just not worth it anymore. That's my final straw. When I get home, I'm ending it! No more harassment. No more mocking. No...more...Derpy!"

"HEY! Leave her alone!"

Derpy's depressing thoughts stopped in their tracks as she heard a phrase she never thought she would hear that was directed at her. She looked up to see a surprised Rain looking above them. Derpy looked up just in time to see a familiar figure fly down in between her and Rain. A familiar figure with shaggy silver hair and a tinted yellow sweatshirt.

It was Silver Lining.


	3. What is This Feeling?

A bit of tension filled the area as Silver Lining stood in between Derpy and Rain Storm. Everybody stopped to see what was going on, and gasped when they saw someone standing up to the most popular girl in school; something no one had ever thought about before. Even Rain was a little bit taken aback by the act, but no one was as confused as Derpy. She went through her whole life of middle school and high school with not one person ever standing up for her, but now, her last year of all times, there's someone new, standing between her and Rain, talking for Derpy.

"I'm sorry," Rain said as if Silver had just insulted her. "What did you say?"

"You heard me," Silver replied sternly. "Leave her alone. She doesn't deserve for you to talk to her that way."

Rain stared a bit more, then started to chuckle. "Look, you're new here, so I'm going to let that one slide, but apparently, you don't know how things work around here. You see, I'm the most popular girl in school, and it's my job I've taken upon myself to make sure that freaks like Derpy don't get their hopes too high about life. In a way, I'm actually helping her. Wouldn't want her to get too cocky after all. See what I mean?"

"The only thing I see is a sad excuse for a role model for the students at Cloudsdale High," Silver responded, not even stopping to think about what Rain just said. "From what I've seen today, this girl needs some motivation. In fact, I think you should take some tips from her about humility and be brought DOWN a few pegs, your majesty!"

Rain blushed furiously as she heard a few distant giggles from the staring crowd. She snapped her head at them and they shut up right away and dispersed. The entire time this was going down, a million thoughts were running through Derpy's mind. Like, "Why is he standing up for me?" and, "He thinks I'm humble?" She just couldn't figure out why someone would be talking for her so...passionately. Suddenly, a thought raced through her head. Something she hadn't thought of before, until she remembered what happened in the past. Unfortunately, the thought came from her depressed side. Her confusion was quickly thrown away and replaced with frustration.

After a few tense seconds passed, Rain tried to think of something to come back with, but words failed her. All she could do was huff and say, "Whatever weirdo!" As she turned to walk away, she quickly looked back at Derpy. "You know, your little boyfriend isn't going to be around forever. We'll continue our session another time." She then snapped her fingers, summoning her groupies to her side, and left hastily. Silver turned back to Derpy and smiled softly.

"You ok?" he asked.

"I'm fine!" mumbled Derpy as she pushed her way passed Silver and headed for home. Silver just stared at her confused.

"You're welcome," he said to himself as he grabbed his bag on the ground and took to the air.

As Derpy continued toward home, she couldn't help but think if she should've said thanks, but she figured it would've been pointless. She didn't want to sound ungrateful, but because of a series of events happening in the past, she didn't want to get involved with him. You see, Derpy's ridicule didn't just come from Rain in the past years, it came from others who were helping Rain. Mostly boys. On more than one occasion in her life, Derpy had been asked out on a date by a boy, claiming that he thought she was really cute. Naturally, after hearing this the first time, Derpy was ecstatic to learn that a boy was interested in her, despite how she looked. Unfortunately, it would all just turn out to be a ruse set up by Rain. This happened to Derpy on three different occasions. Once she was just stood up in front of a fancy restaurant in a fancy dress on a rainy night, then she was ridiculed when the guy taped some personal stuff she said to him and Rain put it over the intercom at school, and the third time was when the guy invited her to play Seven Minutes in Heaven. Derpy went into the closet excited, and came out crying after being tricked to kissing a dog. Since then, Derpy had cut off all connections with guys and her trust in them was just shattered. Derpy didn't want to get involved with Silver because she believed that it was just a trick to get her to trust him. She may have even thought that the whole argument was arranged. Why would anyone want to SERIOUSLY stand up and protect Derpy like that? Though as Derpy walked in her door, she threw all those thoughts out, because she had something to do.

She threw her bags down on the couch as she walked across the hall and into the bathroom. She had gone through the day and her optimism was gone. She was going to end it.

"No more ridicule," she thought as she opened the medicine cabinet.

"No more solitude."

She grabbed the bottle of expired pills.

"No more anything!"

She unscrewed the cap and poured a bunch of the contents into her hand. She was right there. All she had to do was stuff it in her mouth, and it would all be over. All she had to do was pull her hand up to her mouth and gulp down the pile of pills in her hand. It was too easy.

So why couldn't she do it?

She just stared at the contents in her hand. Her mind was telling her to do it, but her brain wouldn't move the muscles. What was holding her back? She didn't have anything else to live for. She had nothing to gain or lose. Her optimism was completely gone!

Wasn't it?

"Today went as badly as the other days," Derpy thought. "Why am I resisting?"

 _"Because it wasn't the same as before,"_ said a familiar voice in Derpy's head. _"For the first time in forever, someone actually stood up for you. You don't know if he's trying to trick you. You don't know if his intentions were impure. Don't you think that he deserves a chance?_

Derpy stared at the pills as her optimism spoke. She didn't want to see what tomorrow would bring, but then again, she also wanted to see if it was going to be like today. Her depression was trying to move her limbs, but her optimism held it back. She thought that her optimism was gone, but that one moment of hope must've triggered something that saved the last bit that was inside her. Now it was fighting to grow again. Derpy's mind turned into a battlefield again as her sides duked it out.

 _"It's not worth it! It's never going to be different!"_

 _"You're wrong! It was different today! Why else would that boy defend her?"_

 _"To trick her like all the other boys?"_

 _"You have no evidence to support that! That boy just might be the something that Derpy needs to keep living!"_

 _"There is nothing for her! She has nothing to live for!"_

As the two sides continued to fight, Derpy was losing control. Her mind was turning to ruins and she couldn't take it anymore. Finally, Derpy let out a scream that silenced the voices and shook the room. The battle in her head was too much for her to handle. The confusion mixed with frustration had done its part. In a fit of rage, Derpy chucked the pills against the bathroom wall, stormed out (running into the corner in the meantime), and jumped face first onto her bed. She didn't know what to make of all this. This was the first time she felt this angry and confused at one time. Derpy lifted her head and felt something slide down her cheek. A single tear. Derpy hadn't cried since her sophomore year, since she cut the world out of her life. After realizing what it was, Derpy quickly wiped her eyes.

"What's going on with me?" Derpy thought as she rolled onto her back.

Her depression was still inside her, but something new had merged. A feeling that Derpy had not felt since her mother was alive. A feeling that spread a small bit of warmth in the frozen, lonely heart of hers. A feeling that was thanks to that one single guy who decided to defend Derpy.

A feeling of hope.

The next day at school, Derpy walked into her classroom and plopped down at her usual desk in the back. Having recovered from her previous tantrum, Derpy was back to her usual emotionless self. There may have been hope put in her heart, but it was still small hope. Derpy took out her notebook and pencil just as Rain came walking in and went back to her.

"Hello there Derp-face," she said. "If I remember correctly, we didn't finish our lecture yesterday."

"And you're not going to," said a stern voice.

Rain turned around to see Silver standing with a smile on his face. Rain opened her mouth but Silver caught in first.

"If you got nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all. Also, you're kinda in the path of my seat."

Rain rolled her eyes and moved a little to the side as Silver moved his way back and sat at his seat beside Derpy. He exchanged her a smile and she forced a smile back. As she walked back to her seat, annoyed at being interrupted again, she slid her hand along Derpy's desk and pushed her notebook off.

"Oh no," she said dramatically. "How derpy of me! Could you pick that up? Thanks hon."

When she had returned to her desk, Derpy leaned down to pick up her notebook, but Silver was already holding it in front of her. Derpy looked at him as he smiled kindly at her and took the notebook. Feeling that saying nothing would be rude, she mumbled a soft, "Thank you," as she turned back to her desk.

"No problem," Silver responded. "I'm Silver Lining by the way, but I guess you already knew that. What's your name?"

"Derpy," she replied quietly.

"That's a nice name," Silver kindly said. "It's nice to meet you Derpy. I hope we get to be good-"

"Could you stop talking please?" Derpy interrupted. "I'd like to listen to the lesson."

"Sorry," Silver replied.

Derpy wondered if she sounded too harsh to him, but remembered her resolution not to fully trust him and returned to her work. The rest of the day was just like before, except at the end of the day, as Derpy walked outside to expect Rain waiting for her, she was greeted by Silver. As he began talking to her, Derpy noticed over his shoulder that Rain was watching her with angry eyes and then walked away in a huff. That was the first time Rain skipped out on a chance to insult her. Was it because Silver had interrupted her twice and she didn't want to hear him do it again? In any case, Derpy was kinda relieved to not have to deal with her. And to her further surprise, she didn't have to deal with Rain face to face the rest of the week.

The next few days showed a lot of difference to the previous ones. Whatever reason he had, Silver started to talk to Derpy any chance he got. Derpy would mostly stay quiet, but interjected a few times in one or two-word sentences. Also, every time she and Silver were seen together, Rain wouldn't harass her. Derpy had to admit, it was nice to not deal with the prissy pegasus-girl for a while, but she figured that she would get comfortable sooner or later and continue her assault, Silver or no. And on the topic of Silver, Derpy found him to be very...friendly. Sometimes a bit TOO friendly though. Everyday he greeted Derpy with a smile, helped her even if she didn't ask for it, and walked her outside at the end of each day. If he really WAS just putting on an act, he was very committed to the part. Derpy WAS still on the notion that he was acting, but every day that she spent with him, a little trust began to build inside. It was something Derpy hadn't thought in a long while. She still tried to keep as much distance from him as possible, but still didn't want to go a whole day without seeing him once. It was a confusing time for Derpy. She knew this though; if his goal was to earn her trust, he was starting to succeed. The only thing was Derpy didn't want to get too close to him, or her hopes might get the better of her, so she kept trying to push him away. Though for one reason or another, Silver was a tough guy to get rid of.

One particular Friday afternoon, Derpy was sitting, having lunch by herself, when who should sit down across from her but Silver Lining. Derpy looked up to see him smiling at her and then continued with her meal as he talked.

"What's up Derpy? Listen, I've been thinking about what to do about that project that was assigned to us in English, and I got the idea last night to make it about-"

"Ok! That's it!" Derpy snapped as she threw down her fork. In her mind, Derpy had enough confusion and wanted to know why he was treating her so nicely. Silver stopped and stared. "What's your game?"

"Game?" Silver asked.

"Yeah," Derpy sternly replied. "Why are you being so nice to me? I'm the least popular girl in school, and not to mention I'm physically deformed! You've seen how others just keep to themselves when they're around me. Why would you want to talk to me?"

"I-I didn't know I was confusing you," Silver responded. "I just saw you sitting by yourself all the time and I thought you needed someone to talk to."

"Well I DON'T!" Derpy scolded. "I don't know what game you're playing, but I want you to knock it off! I don't need anyone to talk to, and I don't need any pity either!"

Derpy picked up her tray and stormed towards the trash cans to dump out her food. Suddenly, her foot tripped on her other one and she fell. And she fell hard. When she landed on the ground with a THUD and the sound of a plastic tray hitting against tile, her face fell into her mashed potatoes. The sound of laughter filled the cafeteria as dozens of students looked on at the lazy-eyed girl with potatoes on her face. Derpy lifted her head and looked around at the laughing students and her depression started to come back. She hadn't made a fool of herself in front of that many peers since middle school.

"WHAT'S SO FUNNY?" Silver's voice cried out.

The echo of his voice was so loud, it quieted all of the students in an instant. Everyone, including Derpy, looked toward him.

"Do you guys have no shame?" Silver scolded as he looked around the room. "Don't you have an ounce of mercy for that poor girl? She falls because of a deformity and you all laugh? Like you guys haven't embarrassed yourself like that before! This girl should be helped, not laughed at. She should be happy and with friends, not sad and alone. Have a little heart guys!"

The students murmured quietly as Silver went over to Derpy, still on the floor. He held out a hand to help her up, but instead, Derpy pushed his hand away and got up herself. No one could see it, but underneath the potatoes, Derpy was blushing furiously. With the combination of her embarrassment, her frustration, and confusion, Derpy turned all of that into anger towards one in particular.

"I don't need your help," Derpy snapped at Silver. "I don't WANT your help! I'm doing fine on my own! I don't need any mercy, kindness, or even FRIENDS! Just leave me alone!"

Derpy wiped off most of the potatoes from her face and stormed out of the cafeteria with everyone looking with widened eyes. It was a good thing Rain didn't eat that lunch period. She might have had a few things to say, and it's guaranteed that it wouldn't have helped.

That night, Derpy laid in bed, tossing and turning. She just couldn't sleep. All she could think about was what happened in the cafeteria. Silver not only stood up for her in front of Rain, but talked good and berated students about laughing at her. No one had ever given a thought about doing that for her. Even after she accused him of acting out kindness and scolding him, he still stood up for her. She didn't know what to do. She had an aching feeling in her heart, one that didn't come from depression or sadness, but guilt. She did feel bad about yelling at him, saying that she didn't want his help or his kindness. She had done what she could to keep Silver as far away from her as possible, but she didn't want to stay away from him. If Derpy was sincerely honest with herself, she DID want his help. She DID want his kindness. She needed someone to talk to. In fact, she had wanted someone to talk to for a long time. The only thing was that...she was afraid. Derpy was absolutely terrified because she didn't want to be let down again. She didn't want to hurt again like she did in the past. She WANTED to trust him, but doubt and fear were holding her back. She didn't know what to do. She could either keep herself far from him out of fear that he would someday betray her, or she could let him into her life. A kind, thoughtful guy who defended her when all else would laugh at her. A guy who saw past her eyes into her heart and saw the suffering girl from within.

As Derpy slowly drifted off to sleep, her last conscious thought was, "I want him as a friend."


	4. Dark Clouds Start to Move

It was early in the morning when Derpy staggered into the empty classroom. Normally she would have woken up THIS early to get to school, but she had something to do. Mr. Aero had finished grading the tests that they took last week, and she wanted to see what her grade was before they were passed out. Normally, the students had to wait for the teacher to pass them out, but Derpy was already up, so she thought she might as well see ahead of time. Derpy hadn't gotten too much sleep the night before, what with her contemplating over what to do about Silver, and was up an hour early. She couldn't go back to sleep, so she decided to just go to class early. She also knew that Mr. Aero always had graded tests on his desks when class started, so getting their early would give her the advantage of getting a look at her grade beforehand. Derpy rubbed her eyes and yawned as she walked in and looked toward the desk at the front of the class. Sure enough, there were the tests, piled up ever so neatly at the far corner. Derpy walked over and picked up the pile as she started going through the names.

"Let's see...Cloudburst...Thunderlane...Fluttershy...ah-ha!" The name Derpy was spotted on the top lefthand corner of the test paper. Derpy pulled out the page and looked to see a big B- on the top. Derpy sighed of relief. She had worried about that test and feared that she didn't do as good on it, but from the look of it, she did fine. Putting the page back in the same place in the pile, Derpy straightened the pile and placed them back where they were originally. She then turned back around to go to her seat when she felt her elbow hit something that went THUNK. Derpy winced as she turned back around to the desk to see something that nearly stopped her heart.

She had spilled the ink vial sitting on the desk and the ink had run onto the pile of tests!

Derpy panicked as she looked around to find something to clean up with. She found a roll of paper towels on the back shelf and grabbed them. As quickly as she could, she started to wipe up the ink. While she got the puddles cleaned up, the ink left a black stain on not only the desk, but the tests as well. Derpy's heart sank. As soon as Mr. Aero saw this, not only would he be disappointed that she ruined the tests, but he would know that she looked at them early, AND she'd probably get in trouble. But another horrible thought came to mind; Rain! Derpy knew that this moment will be like Hearth's Warming Eve for Rain. Knowing her, she never missed out on an opportunity to assault Derpy with an barrage of insults and harsh words for doing something clumsy! This would probably be her Magnum Opus moment! Derpy's heart was racing at a million beats per minute as she panicked over what she was going to do?

"Good morning!"

Derpy almost jumped out of skin as the voice greeted her. Thinking that it was Mr. Aero, Derpy hesitantly turned around shaking in her shoes, only to be relieved that it was just Silver.

"Sweet Celestia," Derpy muttered, clutching her chest. "Don't DO that!

"Sorry," Silver chuckled. "I guess I should've...what happened to the desk?"

Derpy froze. The scare made her forget about the spill. "Uhh...I uhh..." Derpy stammered trying to think of something. Finally, Derpy just came out with it. "Oh what does it matter to you anyway? I accidentally spilled the ink OK? Now not only am I gonna get in trouble, but I'll also be a laughing stock before lunch. You happy?"

"Not really," Silver said quietly. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Not unless you can take me back in time to stop this from happening," Derpy muttered, "and besides, didn't I say to you I didn't need any help? I'm just going to sit down and wait for my time for punishment and ridicule...again."

Derpy went to the back of the room and sat down with her head in her hands. Silver stood at the front, glancing from the desk to Derpy with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Derpy, I-"

Silver was interrupted however, by the sound of students filing into the classroom. He quickly took his seat as the room began to fill. As all of that was going down, Silver looked over at Derpy, still holding her head in her hands, and looked as if he was pondering something.

"Good morning students," Mr. Aero said as he walked into the classroom. Derpy cringed after hearing him as she knew her time was approaching. "Hope you all had a nice day yesterday. Now, I have your tests graded so..." Derpy looked up after hearing him stop mid-sentence to see him looking at the ink spot on his desk.

"Alright," he said in a serious tone. "Who did it? Who spilled ink on my desk?" Nobody said anything. "Come on. If it was one of you, it would be best to speak up now."

"Excuse me sir," Rain said with a raised hand. She had a fake innocent tone in her voice, which Derpy took to be a hint that she was acting what was going to be said next as innocence. "I don't know if this helps, but what if Derpy did it? I mean, she already has that horrible condition with her eyes right?" Derpy clenched her teeth as Rain looked back at her with eyes that said, "Now you're in for it."

"Derpy," Mr. Aero said, turning to her, "did you do this?"

Derpy swallowed hard. Everybody's eyes were on her. There was no getting out of it, so she thought to herself that she might as well get it over with.

"Well...Mr. Aero...I..."

"I did," Silver interrupted.

Derpy's mind went completely blank when she heard those two little words. Everybody turned to Silver who had risen his hand.

"It was me sir," Silver said with no hesitation whatsoever. "I came in early to see my grade on the test and I accidentally knocked over the ink. I tried my best to clean it up, but it wasn't enough. I'm sorry."

Derpy dropped the pencil she was holding. No words could describe what she was feeling at that moment. Trying to befriend her? That's easily suspicious. Standing up for her? Almost as. But taking the blame for something she did know full well that it would probably lead to punishment or ridicule? Not even classmates pretending to be her friend would've done something like that. Derpy's mouth just hung open in pure, unadulterated shock. Mr. Aero, on the other hand, looked at Silver with serious eyes.

"Well," he said after a short pause, "I do appreciate your honesty and courage in stepping up. However, you are aware that I don't appreciate sneaking peeks at things I haven't handed out yet. So, for your honesty, I will not write you up, but I DO request that you stay after school today to help clean your stain up. The janitor has some stain remover in the closet."

"I understand sir," Silver replied.

"I'll have to print some new copies of the tests." Mr. Aero announced. "I'll be right back."

As he left the room, Rain turned to Derpy with a smug look. "It's your lucky day Derp-face. Looks like there's a NEW bull in the china shop." The class giggled a bit at the statement, as did Silver.

"Yeah," he chuckled. "I...just don't know what went wrong." He then turned to Derpy and gave her a subtle wink and a soft smile. Derpy was still in shock, but something else hit her as well. It was like a bolt of lightning struck her heart, zapping away a huge chunk of doubt and depression from her. She didn't suspect anything from him anymore. He had done what Derpy thought nobody who truly cared about her would do. All Derpy could do as she turned back to her books, was something she hadn't done in a while.

Smile.

That afternoon at lunch, Derpy came out of the lunch line with her tray, looking for somewhere to sit. She looked around the crowded cafeteria until she saw Silver sitting by himself. Derpy took a deep breath and walked over to him. "Uh...hi," she said softly.

Silver looked up and smiled. "Hi Derpy."

Derpy looked around, blushing furiously, as she tried to find the words, "Would it...be ok...if I...uh...sat with you?"

"Of course," Silver happily replied. "Take a seat." Derpy sat down and the two began eating silently.

After a minute or two, Derpy looked at Silver and without even planning it, softly said, "Thanks."

Silver didn't even have to ask what she meant. He just smiled and replied, "Not a problem." Derpy smiled back and the two began to talk while they ate.

Derpy didn't know it yet, but what happened just then sparked a new hope within Derpy's heart. A hope for a good friend.

The next few weeks were some of Derpy's best weeks she's ever had. She didn't know why she ever thought choosing to be alone was ever a good idea. With Silver hanging out with her, life was so much better. Derpy still wasn't at the fully optimistic stage, but her attitude seemed to be getting better and better every day. The two spent most of their time together. They walked to school together, ate lunch together, and walked home together. Derpy didn't know which was better; the fact that she had someone to hang out with now, or the fact that Rain wasn't able to insult her anymore. Seriously, after the two started hanging out, Rain had stopped the bullying. Not to say that she hadn't tried, but every time she tried to insult them, Silver had a retort that left her speechless. One day, they were walking home from school, when they were greeted by Rain.

"Well look who it is," she said. "Here comes the Derp Duo."

Normally, Derpy would've just tried to ignore it and wait until Rain finished her insults, but Silver intervened.

"Derp Duo," he responded. "Very original! I would've gone with Klutz Clan, but yours was creative too."

Rain just stared at him confused. She tried to think of something else, but just left in a huff. Derpy turned to him with a stunned look on her face. "How do you do that?"

"Ah it's not that hard," Silver chuckled. "I'll tell you more sometime."

Soon the seasons began to change as the weather grew colder and the autumn colors began to appear. The fall break was well on its way as students were finishing up their term assignments. As the colors around them changed, Derpy started to change as well. Before, she wouldn't have talked to Silver so openly, but one particular day, she decided to open up more to him. It was the day before their week-long fall break as Derpy and Silver sat at Sugarcube Corner, the famous bakery in Ponyville, sharing a plateful of blueberry and pumpkin spice muffins. Silver couldn't help but smile as he bit into the baked good and tasted the mix of pumpkin and cinnamon. "I've never had muffins this good!" he said, licking his lips.

"You don't know what you have been missing out," Derpy replied. "Sugarcube Corner makes the best muffins around. Even better than Cloudsdale. There are just no baked goods like Ponyville baked goods, at least that's what my mother would-" Derpy stopped mid sentence and lowered her head a little. Silver looked back at her with concerned eyes.

"You ok?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Derpy mumbled. "It's just that...well...my mom used to buy me muffins from here. Always blueberry, and I loved them every time." A moment of awkward silence passed between the two until Silver finally spoke up.

"So...what happened to her?"

Derpy lifted her face to Silver's. She had never talked openly about her mom before. She didn't know if she could. It was painful enough as it was to think about her. But then again, Silver was someone who could be trusted, so maybe having someone to talk to about it would be a good thing. Something she could get off her chest.

"Well," she started, "she died when I was starting my freshman year in school. She caught a case of tuberculosis, and no matter how much treatment she got, she just continued to grow weaker and weaker, until one night, she died. I had no one else to care for me. My dad died before I was born, so the only means of caring for me was going to a foster home. It was never the same after she died. My mom was the only one to care for me, love me, and treat me like I was a human, not a freak."

"You must've spent a whole bunch of tears huh?" Silver asked, fiddling with his muffin.

"Maybe when I was younger," Derpy replied, "but I don't cry anymore."

"Why?"

"Because crying's for kids. Besides, it shows weakness. The last thing I wanted to appear in high school was weak, so I stopped crying altogether. Haven't shred a tear for three years and I don't plan to start now."

"But it makes things better," Silver responded. "Crying may seem childish, but everyone deserves to cry. It's only natural, and after you do, it relieves so much tension. Every person of every age cries. I should know."

"What do you mean?" Derpy asked.

"You and I are more alike than you think Derpy." She looked at him with confusion. "I had a rough childhood as well. My dad was an alcoholic. I remember many a nights when I would listen to my parents yell at each other. It would normally end with him hitting her and leaving once again."

"What happened to him?" Derpy asked.

"Arrested. After being caught flying under the influence, he was sent to prison and is still there to this day; Baltimare State Prison. I haven't talked to him in a while, but I don't even know how to confront him."

"What about your mom?"

Silver paused for a moment. Derpy couldn't help but notice a sense of sorrow in his eyes. "She...was killed in a flying accident. She was coming home from the grocery store during a storm. She soared too close to the clouds and...BOOM! No more mom. That was about a year ago, and I've been on my own every since."

"Wow," Derpy muttered. He wasn't kidding when he said they had more in common than she thought. He almost had just a depressing childhood as she did. "I'm amazed that you're so upbeat after everything that happened to you. I would've probably become as depressed as...well...me."

"That's what I don't understand about you Derpy," Silver said. "I never realized how you could stay so depressed. I mean I understand that losing a parent would be painful, but that's no reason to STAY unhappy."

"Well, it's more than that," Derpy replied. "I have a deformity. One of my eyes is off, I can't see properly in it, I trip because of it, and I constantly get ridiculed for it. If that doesn't give me an excuse to be unhappy, I don't know what will."

"Well, I understand it can be hard," Silver said, "but wouldn't it be better to just...move on?" Derpy jerked her head up and glared at him.

"Are you saying I don't have a reason to be constantly unhappy?" Derpy asked, insulted by his statement.

"No, but-"

"Are you saying I should just forget about everything bad that has happened and just move on being all happy-pappy like YOU?"

"I didn't say that Derpy," Silver said calmly. "I just thought that-"

"WHAT WOULD YOU KNOW ABOUT IT?" Derpy shouted, standing up. Everybody turned to look, but Derpy didn't care. "You don't know what it's like to have a deformity. To be stuck with something that makes you look like a freak as well as be ridiculed and harassed daily for it. You don't know what it's like and you'll NEVER know what it's like! Don't you DARE tell me that I shouldn't be unhappy!" And with that, Derpy stormed out of the shop in a blind fury. As she walked away though, Derpy stopped to look back at the stunned Silver. Shaking her head back to reality, she flew off for home.


	5. Tears

That night, everybody was probably staying up late or partying, celebrating about the fall break they were going to enjoy. Everybody but Derpy. She lay in her bed, tossing and turning, trying to forget what happened that day. She didn't succeed. She couldn't help but feel guilty about yelling at Silver like that. He was just trying to cheer her up, and she took her unhappiness out on him. She didn't know what happened. Something he said about letting go everything bad that had happened to her made her snap, but that's still no excuse. She couldn't afford losing him over something this trivial. She knew what she had to do. The next morning, the first thing Derpy did was call Silver. As the phone rang, Derpy rehearsed what she was going to say. When a voice picked up, it turned out to be the voicemail. "Hi this is Silver Lining. I'm not here right now, but leave a message after the tone." After hearing the tone, Derpy spoke.

"Hi...uh Silver? This is Derpy. Look, I'm calling to say I'm sorry for yelling at you the other day. I shouldn't be taking my unhappiness out on you like that. Could you call me back as soon as possible? I still want to go to the Running of the Leaves with you. Thanks, bye."

Strangely enough, Silver DIDN'T call back. Derpy kept her phone on her all day and heard nothing from him. This wasn't like him. Silver usually responded within half an hour if he didn't have his phone. Worried, Derpy decided to go to his house instead. When she got there though, the door was locked and the place was empty. Derpy was starting to really worry. He didn't have his phone and he wasn't at his house. Where else would he be? He didn't have a job to go to. He didn't tell her anything about taking a vacation, and even if he did, he would still have his phone with him. As every possibility passed through Derpy's mind, each one was shot down by reality. She didn't know what had happened to him. "C'mon Derpy," she told herself. "Stay optimistic. Maybe he'll meet you at the Running of the Leaves. Just go and he'll probably be there."

The Running of the Leaves was an yearly event done every autumn in Ponyville where people sign up to run a marathon through the forest. There was also a festival that happened along with the event, so people from all over came to witness and have fun. Derpy and Silver had talked about going together, so Derpy went down on the day of the festival to meet with Silver. However, as the festival went on, Derpy still saw no sign of him. He was never late for an event, so what was keeping him? Derpy waited...and waited...and waited some more, but still nothing. After an hour and a half, Derpy had come to the conclusion that he wasn't coming. So with a frown forming on her face, Derpy turned to leave for home. Unfortunately, as she turned, she ran into a snack table and accidentally toppled everything over. Cookies, chips, and drinks splattered everywhere as the table fell. Everyone turned to see Derpy, on the ground, with soda soaked on her clothes and crumbs in her hair. And if Derpy thought it couldn't get any more embarrassing, a familiar voice called out, "Oh no! Who let the derp-eyed wrecking ball in the party?" Derpy looked up to see Rain Storm, smiling smugly at her. The sound of giggles and murmurs passed throughout the crowd as Derpy sat there, embarrassed and more hurt than she had felt in a while. Gathering up what was left of her dignity, Derpy got up and flew hastily back home. As she flew, Derpy felt a tear starting to leak from her eye, so she quickly rubbed it out of sight.

The week-long break was the longest Derpy ever experienced. All she did was stay inside her house and mope around, and for good reason. Not only had she not heard anything from Silver, but Derpy felt more lonely than she had before. She never knew how much she truly depended on Silver to make her smile again. She never realized how much he had started to change her. Without him around, Derpy started to go back to her usual depression. She remembered how much trouble her eye had caused, and how much harassment she got from it. It made her sick to the stomach. As for not hearing anything from Silver, Derpy had started thinking bad thoughts, like what if he took what she said to offense and didn't want to see her again, or what if something bad had happened to him. In any case, she couldn't help but miss him. It had only been a week, and Derpy felt so lost without him. With the next term coming up, Derpy wondered if he'll even be coming back to school. At that point, all she could do was hope.

After fall break had finished, the students were back in class, looking forward to winter break and Hearth's Warming Eve. Unfortunately for Derpy, her first day went like any day before meeting Silver; full of solitude and embarrassment. As she sat in class, listening to the teacher's lecture, she occasionally glanced over at the vacant seat next to her, imagining him there. She really did miss Silver. He didn't appear throughout the entire day though, so she wasn't too sure anymore if he would even be coming back. After school, Derpy walked outside where a certain smug pegasus-girl and her groupies were waiting. "Here we go again," Derpy thought sadly. "Just like old times."

"Hey there Klutz," Rain greeted. "Y'know, I've never noticed how horrible your life must be without Silver Lining to fight your little battles. It must suck to know that he probably won't be coming back."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that," a voice called out.

Derpy's expression changed in an instant from depressed to overjoyed when she heard that familiar voice. Rain's expression changed as well from smug to disgusted. The two turned to see none other than Silver Lining, walking towards them. "I'm not going anywhere," he said to Rain calmly. Rain huffed in anger as she turned and flew off, followed closely by her groupies. Derpy didn't waste any time in wrapping Silver in a big hug.

"Oh my gosh Silver! I thought you weren't coming back! I'm so sorry about what I said to you before! Where have you been?" Suddenly, her tone changed from happy to outraged as she broke the hug and stared at Silver. "Where HAVE you been? I have tried calling and calling! I've been to your house, our hangout spots, everywhere! Not one call from you! You had better have a good explana-" Derpy stopped mid sentence as she finally noticed Silver's appearance. He looked...different. His skin, it seemed, had grown more pale, his body seemed thinner that before, and his hair was cut shorter, almost to the point of being buzzed. "Did you get a haircut?" Derpy asked.

"Uhh...yeah," Silver replied. "Just a haircut."

"Well where were you?" Derpy asked again. She then stopped and noticed what Silver was wearing. He had a heavy coat, but instead of being worn normally, he had it draped over the left side of his body, covering up his arm. "Uhh...Silver? Don't you think it's a little cold to NOT be wearing your coat?"

"Oh it's nothing Derpy," Silver said.

"Then why don't you put it on normally?" Derpy asked.

"For my own reasons."

"What reasons?"

"Derpy..."

"No. I want to know. Why are you wearing your coat like that?" Derpy was definitely not going down without a fight. The two stared each other down for a minute before Silver sighed of defeat and took off his jacket. Derpy's eyes widened, her pupils shrunk to the size of pins, and she cupped her hands over her mouth in shock from what she saw.

Silver's left arm was gone.

"Silver!" Derpy gasped. "W-what happened to you? Were you in an accident?"

"No, not exactly," Silver sighed. "I was going to tell you tomorrow, but I suppose I might as well say it now." He took in a deep breath as if preparing to give the biggest news in the world.

"About two months before I moved here, I was...well...diagnosed with...bone cancer."

Derpy gasped in disbelief. "I had aches going on in my arm and I didn't know why until I went to the doctor." Silver continued. "I had been fine for a while, until the last day we saw each other. After I had gone home, the aches in my arm were far worse than before, so I called the doctor. I was rushed to the hospital and kept there for the entire week. After running tests, the doctors concluded that the cancer was spreading at a much rapid pace. To try and stop the flow, they decided to...well...amputate my arm. I went through some chemotherapy sessions and for the most part, started to feel better. I was released yesterday. That's why I never called you back. I'm sorry I worried you so much."

"YOU'RE sorry?" Derpy shrieked as she closed in on Silver. She then wrapped her arms around him in a more comforting hug. "I'M the one who's sorry. I thought the worst about what happened to you, but it still wasn't as bad as what you just told me. It must've been horrible to learn that you would lose an arm." Derpy could've kicked herself. She told Silver that he didn't know what it felt like to be unhappy from having a deformity, and now he HAD one! Derpy knew that Rain would find something to say about this in an instant. He was going to truly feel depressed from ridicule and struggle. She couldn't let him journey through that alone. He was there for her, so now she was going to be there for him. "Well don't you worry Silver. I'm gonna be right here to comfort you when you need it!" Silver smiled as he returned the hug.

"Thanks Derpy," he whispered.

The next day came before Derpy really wanted it to. She spent the night worrying about Silver. How would he handle the struggle of having only one arm? Would Rain taunt him? And if so, how will he respond? In any case, Derpy was ready to repay herself for all the kindness he gave her. As they walked into the classroom, every eye fell on Silver, sporting a sweatshirt with the left sleeve tucked in. Whispers scattered throughout the class as everyone stared at Silver as he traveled back to his desk with Derpy. As they sat down, in came Rain, looking as smug as ever. "Here we go!" Derpy thought. "Then again, maybe Rain will be sympathetic. Maybe she won't taunt him."

As Rain traveled back to her desk, she stopped at Derpy's. "Morning Derp-face. Nice to SEE you! Of course, for you, it would only be seeing HALF of me." She laughed a little then turned to Silver. She opened her mouth, but then looked down at his torso. Her eyes grew wide as she glared at the missing limb for a second, then she looked back up at Silver's face, and said, "I guess this ruins any chances of you being ambidextrous huh?" Derpy's insides roared with fury! Had she no moral? How dare she taunt him! Here he is at his weakest point, and she's taunting him! Well Derpy wasn't having any of it! She was ready to defend Silver! She felt as if she could handle anything!

"I guess it's a good thing I'm right-handed then." Silver chuckled.

Except that. Derpy froze from shock as her mouth fell open. Confusion swept her mind as she tried to comprehend on what she just heard. Even after getting his arm chopped off, even after it being confirmed that the deadly disease was still inside of him, and even after being harassed by Rain...he STILL had his happy attitude? Derpy couldn't believe it. He was still as chipper and heartfelt as before. Rain was just as stunned. Apparently, she was thinking the comment would've had better affect on him, but alas, it did nothing. Rain just brushed her hair back, and walked back to her desk, just in time for the teacher to come in. As he started talking, and Silver went to his notebook, Derpy still sat there, staring at her desk, with a look of disbelief on her face. Derpy was confused. She should've been happy that he was still strong. She should've been thankful that he didn't take Rain's words to heart, but she didn't feel any of that.

To her surprise, Derpy felt...angry.

As the day went on, Derpy's feeling just stayed as she saw what Silver did. Throughout the day, he didn't show any sign of unhappiness or depression from his condition. On the contrary, he just stayed peppy no matter what happened. At one portion, Silver was trying to tie his shoe with his right hand and mouth. Someone finally came to help him, but not before Rain walked by him saying, "Having a predicament are you Onesy?"

Silver just casually replied, "Yea. It works better with two hands." Another moment was when Silver was walking in the halls and came up on a student who was trying to get his stuck locker door open. Silver just casually walked up and happily said, "Need help? I'll lend you a hand, but only one!" He was like that throughout the entirety of the day. And the whole time Silver showed his happiness, Derpy started to show her depression. Every time he was around her, she acted cold and distant, kind of how she acted when she first met him. Derpy didn't know why, but she just didn't feel happy for him. It sounded horrible, but she couldn't. At one point in the day, Derpy sat in the bathroom, fighting back tears and telling herself to toughen up. Something was definitely bothering her. By the end of the day, Derpy had been fighting her anger to the brim, and Silver was just as casual as how he was when the day started. Nothing had changed. As they crossed the street to get home, they passed a mother walking with her young daughter.

The girl noticed Silver's arm and said, "Mommy, where did his other arm go?" while pointing at it. Derpy's insides stirred some more.

"Puffy!" the mother scolded. "It's not polite to point." She turned to Silver. "I'm very sorry."

"It's quite alright," Silver replied with a smile. As the mother and child walked away, Silver turned to Derpy. "Kids these day huh? Full of questions and need for understanding. I remember as a kid, I would ask questions consta-"

"WOULD YOU STOP BEING HAPPY FOR ONE MINUTE?" Derpy shouted. Something had finally snapped inside of her. The buildup of frustration had taken its toll and was finally released. Silver closed his mouth and looked at Derpy, stunned at her comment. Derpy didn't waste time glaring at him and ran off toward her house, the slight sight of more tears leaking out. This did not go unnoticed by Silver. Something was seriously wrong, and he was going to find out. He followed her back to her house and found her sitting at the front door, knelt down, with her head in her arm.

"Derpy," Silver calmly called.

"Go away," Derpy replied quietly but roughly.

Silver scooted closer to her. "Derpy, what was that about?"

"I said go away," Derpy replied more harshly.

This time, Silver was not about to leave without a fight. "Derpy! I had been patient with your attitude in the past, and I've tried to help in any way I can, but today, you seem more miserable than before. I know it's hard to lose a family member that you loved so much, but-"

"It's not that," Derpy said.

"Then is it about your eyes?" Silver asked. "It's natural to feel down about yourself, and to let the things they say get to you-"

"It's not me!" Derpy snapped. "It's you!"

"Me?" Silver asked. "What about me?"

"Nevermind," Derpy said, turning her head away.

"What's wrong Derpy?"

"Leave me alone."

"NO!" Silver finally snapped. "I will NOT leave you alone! I want to know. What is truly wrong? Derpy, please let me in! I want to help you! I want to be here for you! But you have to let me in! Tell me! Why are you so upset? Why are you so miserable? Why are you so depressed? WHY ARE YOU SO UNHAPPY?"

"BECAUSE YOU AREN'T!"

Those last words made everything go silent. Now it was finally out. Derpy was unhappy because Silver wasn't unhappy. A long silence filled the air as Silver and Derpy stared at each other. Each didn't know how to follow that. Finally, Silver broke the silence. "What do you mean?" he asked calmly.

Derpy sighed. "Do you remember the last time we spoke before break, I yelled at you saying that you didn't know what it was like to be unhappy because you didn't have a deformity to be taunted for?" Silver nodded yes. "Well, now you DO have a deformity, AND were teased for it, AND you have a deadly disease that has been nipping away at your life for months, and you're STILL not unhappy!" Silver never thought about it that way. Now that she mentioned it, he wasn't feeling depressed at all.

"You're right," he mumbled. "I'm not." It surprised him a little bit. Through everything he had been through, he still wasn't unhappy with his life. Derpy had been through almost just as much, and she was a mess when they met. Suddenly, that's when a realization came to Silver's head. "That makes you jealous. Doesn't it?"

Derpy nodded as her eyes started to water. "Yeah! I-I don't know how to do that! How can you-" Derpy stopped as she frantically wiped the tears off of her cheeks and started to hide her face. But Silver had other ideas. He quickly grabbed Derpy's arm as he positioned her so that they were looking face to face.

"Derpy! Stop fighting!" he said intensely. "I know you think that crying show weakness, but it doesn't! In fact, it shows that you are strong! It's ok to cry Derpy! I can tell you have been blocking it for years, and your dam is ready to burst. If you don't cry soon, it'll destroy you! You have to let go!" At that point, tears started to flow from Silver's eyes. "You don't have to face this alone Derpy! I'm here for you! I will always be here for you! Just let go!"

Derpy stared at the crying man in front of her with a million thoughts rushing through her head. She didn't know what to do. Maybe...just maybe if the strong-hearted Silver Lining could cry, maybe it was ok for her to cry to.

"Just let go!" Silver repeated. At that point, Derpy let go of all thoughts. Her brain went dead, her floodgates opened, and she started to bawl. The tears flew down her face like waterfalls as she howled with years of pain, depression, and sadness finally breaking free. Silver grabbed her and wrapped Derpy in a comforting hug as she continued her downpour. No more holding back. No more closing off.

Derpy had finally broken down.


	6. Silver's Story

Derpy had gone without crying for over two years. After she cut all emotion out of her life, she stopped completely, not realizing how dangerous it was for her to hold in all those tears. She never knew that one meeting with one person could change that record in a few minutes. She had never cried like that in her life. Even after her mother died, she never cried as hard as she did then. All those years of pain and suffering were finally released in two years' worth of tears. And as Derpy cried with her head resting on Silver Lining's shoulder, in all the mayhem, she couldn't help but feel, well, lighter. It was as if a huge weight was being lifted off of her with each wave of tears. All these years, she thought that crying would just get in the way and show weakness, but releasing all those tears made her feel stronger.

After what seemed like 10 minutes, Derpy's crying died down into whimpers and sniffles. Silver, whose shoulder was soaked in the process, broke the hug and looked at the red-faced Derpy. "Better?" he asked calmly.

Derpy wiped the tears from her eyes as she spoke. "Surprisingly, yeah. You were right. It sniffle does feel good to cry. But I still don't understand something. How are you so happy all the time? I mean, you've been through just as much emotional scarring as I have, and yet, you're not even the slightest depressed. How can you be happy?" Silver smiled. He never really explained it before, but if anyone needed to hear it, it was Derpy.

"Well," he said, "first let me clear something up. I'm not always happy. I still get sad, angry, scared, I mean after all, I'm still human. But Derpy, there is a BIG difference between being happy and being joyful." Derpy looked at him confused. "Happy is just another usual emotion. It comes and goes easily and sometimes it only lasts a short time. Joy, on the other hand, is much more lasting! A person can have the worst things happen to him in life, but still be joyful. Joy isn't something that can fully be seen on the outside. It's an inner emotion. Something that stays with you once you have it. It's the feeling that no matter what you go through in your life, good or bad, you always know that something good will come out of it, and it's important not to focus only on the bad, but realize that some good can come of it."

"Easy for you to say," Derpy said as she continued to dry her eyes. "How would you know about being depressed?"

"Because I've been there," Silver responded. "Do you think I've always been this joyful or optimistic? Joy isn't something that you're born with. You have to find it for yourself, and my childhood was NOT a joyful one. I definitely wasn't able to find joy from my parents. Heck, I wasn't even supposed to be born."

"What do you mean?" Derpy asked.

"When my mom was pregnant with me," Silver explained, "I looked too weak to even last a full minute outside of the womb. The doctors said that I would die right away, so my parents weren't expecting a child. But after I was born and they saw that I was healthy as a horse, my mother gave me the name Silver Lining because I restored her hope. I guess she also got the name from the ray of light that appeared in the hospital room after I was born."

"That's...a miracle!" Derpy said with awe.

"Yea, but that was just the beginning of a hard life for me," Silver said. "I mentioned before that my dad was an alcoholic right?" Derpy nodded. "Every night I would listen to my parents argue. There wasn't a week that went by that I didn't hear at least one big argument from them. I became more and more depressed because my dad was never around or sober enough to be with me, and my mom was too busy with her work. If it weren't for Miss Caringheart, I would've been lost completely in depression."

"Who's Miss Caringheart?" Derpy asked.

"She was my third grade teacher," Silver responded. "She was the one who took a liking to me and noticed my depression. She took me under her wing, and became like a second mother to me. She lived right next door to me, so every time my parents would get into a huge argument, I would sneak out and visit her. I remember crying in her arms as she hugged me tight. She would tell me it wasn't my fault and that everything was going to be fine. I was able to find a little bit of happiness after visiting her. Then, came that fateful day when my dad got arrested. I-" Silver stopped to wipe his eyes, as tears started to form. "-I felt so lost after he left. My mom sunk into a deep depression and started to pay less attention to me. I was in the seventh grade at the time, and I still didn't understand. Why did he have to go? Why did it have to happen to MY family? The kids at school called my dad a drunk and that he deserved to go to prison. They teased me for being the son of a drunken idiot. I never felt so alone or sad before in my life. One day, I thought about taking a gun from my dad's drawer, and finishing myself right there."

By this point, Silver was crying himself. Derpy couldn't help but tear up a little as well. She could see that even remembering all that happened to him was hard to do for him. She never realized how much pain he went through. "What happened," she asked as Silver wiped his eyes.

"Miss Caringheart happened," Silver replied with a smile. "On the day I had decided to take my life, I stopped by her house to say good-bye. I remember it so well. She...she wrapped me in a hug, and started to cry. I had never seen her cry before. I didn't know how to react. The only thing I could think to do was, well, cry with her. So that's what I did. We must've cried for half an hour before she spoke to me, and what she said, I will never ever forget. She looked me right in the eyes and said, 'Silver, you're not a waste of life. You have so much potential to make this world a better place. You have a gift for making others feel better about themselves, but to unlock this gift, you have to stop focusing on the bad, and look for the good. After all, every cloud as a silver lining.' She taught me that there is good that can come out of even the worst of events. She's the one who helped me find joy in my life, as well as look on the bright side of things. It was after that meeting that I went home and comforted my mom. I told her everything I had learned and encouraged her to do the same. To my surprise, she took the advice to heart and promised to try harder in looking for the good. It was at that point that I realized my true talent was making people feel good and to help them in looking for the silver lining. That's when this appeared." He held up his hand to reveal his cutie mark; a sun peeking out from behind a gray cloud.

"Wait a minute," Derpy interrupted. "You didn't get your cutie mark until seventh grade?"

"Kinda late, I know," Silver chuckled, "but it didn't matter how late I got it. I was just happy to finally find my purpose. After that, I met with Miss Caringheart every day to talk and get tips on being joyful. After she moved, I continued on the journey by myself. I went around showing my joyful attitude and helping others who needed cheering up. Then, after my mom died, I was saddened for a while, but I didn't let it get to me. I realized that I would see my mom again someday, and that was the silver lining. During the end of my junior year, I had notice that my arm was aching a lot. At first I thought it was just cramping, but after it continued for over an hour, I went to the doctor and discovered I had bone cancer. It was a lot to take in, and I even went through a short depression, but then I realized that the cancer may have been killing me, but I would be seeing my mother sooner than I thought. That was when I truly figured out the power joy had and it broke me out of my depression. I decided to move to Cloudsdale because, well one, my mom was born there, and two because I had a feeling that maybe I would be needed there too. And that's where we are today."

Derpy stood there with her mouth ajar. Silver had been through so much, much more than she ever thought. When she met him, she thought that his perky attitude was just something that he was born with. Now she saw that it was just the opposite. There was living proof that there was another out there who understood what she was going through and even more, and was able to find joy in life. But the depression had been with Derpy for such a long time. How was she supposed to be joyful, when she couldn't even move on with her life?

"You make it sound so easy," Derpy said softly. "Finding good in the bad, getting joy from pain. It sounds wonderful, but why don't I have any joy?"

"Derpy," Silver said as he put a hand on her shoulder. "You HAVE joy. I've noticed it. You've just been so caught up in thinking of the bad in your life, that you've misplaced it. I want you to try something. Instead of focusing on the bad, I want you to think of one good thing in your life. What is one good thing that is going on in your life right now?" Derpy thought hard. She knew her bad stuff. Having a disability, being harassed for it, having no parents, having no friends. There had to be something that was good about her life. Anything at all.

Suddenly, something DID pop up in her head.

"You..." she whispered.

"What was that," Silver asked.

"You!" Derpy said louder. "I met you! I was literally on the verge of taking my own life on the day you came into class. I was going to go home and kill myself, but then...you stood up for me. You put something within my heart that I hadn't felt in a long time. You put hope in me. Hope for someone who would treat me like a human being. To see beyond the eyes and see into my heart."

"Derpy," Silver smiled, "do you want to be joyful again?"

Derpy didn't even hesitate. "Yes!" she said as tears started to form again. "I want to be joyful. I want my bubbly attitude back! I want what you have Silver! But...how? How do I do it?"

"You've already taken the first step," Silver responded. "Stepping out of denial. You are already on your way Derpy! Throughout the week, I will teach you all of my methods in fighting depression and being joyful in the worst of times. I'll train you in everything I know. Derpy," Silver looked into her eyes with confidence. "You will be bubbly again!" Tears filled Derpy's eyes as she started to laugh and cry at the same time. She never felt more comforted in her life as she did at that moment.

"Alright," she said as she wiped her eyes. "But Silver, there's something I really want to know?" Silver looked up at her. "Why? I mean, why would you go to all of this trouble to help me?"

"Because," Silver said with a smile, "that's what friends are for."

Derpy's mind stopped. She...had a friend? She had never given it the thought that Silver was her friend, but she guessed that it was true. Derpy had a friend! Derpy's heart went into overdrive as a speck of joy started to grow bigger and bigger.

"Ok," she replied. "Can I ask you one more thing?" Silver nodded. "Can...can I have another hug?"

Silver smiled and nodded as he pulled Derpy into his arm. Derpy started to cry again as she said, "Thank you," over and over. Silver just rubbed her back and smiled. As they sat there in a hug, all that could be said was that life would not be the same for either of them.

The first day of training, Derpy arrived at Silver's house right after school. She was still a little nervous, but had a feeling that Silver would not let her down. Silver invited her in and they enjoyed a plate of muffins before starting. "Ok Derpy," Silver started. "From what I've gathered, your depression stems from your deformity and the bullying, correct?" Derpy nodded. "Then the first step is to make good out of the deformity. You see the eyes as a curse, and you find your clumsiness as an embarrassment. This is natural, but you can't let that notion take control. The key is to like yourself for who you are. Don't run away, but embrace! If you accept yourself and your deformity, others will see that you do and follow."

"Embrace huh?" Derpy noted. "I guess I can try it."

"Good," Silver smiled. "Now for the core problem; the bullying. Bullies harass others for many reasons. They are hiding their own flaws, they want to look cool, or whatever the reason. The point is that we can't allow the bullies to gain power of this. It's always good to have a retort."

"I've tried that already," Derpy sighed. "I tried insulting her, but she had a better retort."

"That's where you went wrong," Silver pointed out. "Bullies are expecting you to come back with frustration or sadness. That's what gives them power. But here's something you probably wouldn't think to do. Retort with kindness." Derpy looked at him, her head tilting slightly in confusion. "I know it sounds weird," Silver chuckled, "but trust me. The bullies aren't expecting you to compliment them, so try that. Be kind to them, and they'll cringe knowing that they don't deserve it."

"Oh!" Derpy gasped. "Like a 'Kill them with Kindness' thing?"

"Exactly!" Silver responded. "And if you need something else, there's another surefire way to throw them off. Make fun of yourself."

"Wait...what?" Derpy asked. "Make fun of...myself?"

"Here me out," Silver said. "Bullies are looking to laugh at you and exploit your weaknesses. But if you exploit your own weaknesses and laugh WITH them, they won't have anything to go off of. They will get bored after a while, and leave you alone."

"Actually," Derpy thought, "in a weird way, that kinda makes sense."

"I have even adapted a catchphrase to go with making fun of myself," Silver smiled. "I just throw my hands in the air and say, 'I just don't know what went wrong!' Works every time. And now, I'm going to pass that phrase to you. I give you my full blessings in using that phrase."

"I just don't know what went wrong," Derpy repeated. "It is quite catchy."

"Alright Derpy," Silver said, "Are you ready to try it?" Derpy nodded as the trials began. The first exercise was Derpy finding reasons why she likes her eyes. It took her a few minutes, but she finally said that she likes the eye color as well as the fact that they have a cute look to them. The next test was Silver pretending to be Rain and insulting Derpy. Her job was to come up with a retort by either showing kindness or making fun of herself. While getting off to a rocky start, throughout the week, Derpy started to show promise. She started to get more and more confident with every lesson. She soon stopped hesitating so much and just spoke clearly. She came up with new ways to make fun of herself, including her new catchphrase, "I just don't know what went wrong." Derpy could definitely start feeling the changes inside of her. It was as if the depression was being smothered by the confidence and hope that she was starting to get. Derpy was turning into a new girl. Pretty soon, she was completing each session with a smile, and it was at that point that Silver knew the time had come.

"You're ready." he said as they finished their last session. It was time for Derpy to face the world again.


	7. That Bubbly Attitude

As Derpy and Silver walked to school together, Derpy couldn't help but feel a little nervous. She had been training for a week, and now, it was time to show what she was capable of doing. She had done really well in her practices, but that was with Silver pretending to be Rain. This was the real deal. The show stopper. It was do or die of embarrassment. It was going to be a lot harder with the real Rain being right in front of her, dealing out her usual dose of insults. Derpy was sure of this. But with all the nervousness that she had inside her, she also couldn't help but feel a little anxious as well. This was her chance to take a stand for herself with no one else around to help her. It was still going to be difficult converting frustration to kindness and making fun of oneself, but not altogether impossible, Silver proved that. As they neared the doors, Derpy continually went over the tips Silver gave her over and over in her head. "Kill with kindness! Make fun of yourself! Embrace your disability! I just don't know what went wrong!"

"You ok?" Silver asked. Derpy snapped out of her trance and noticed that she was sweating a little.

"Yeah," she said, wiping her forehead. "Just a little nervous."

"Don't you worry!" Silver smiled as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "If you do what you've been doing in training, then this should be a walk in the park for you!" Derpy smiled, calmed down by Silver's motivation. It was nice to have him cheering her on. As soon as they had gone into the classroom, Derpy noticed Rain at the back of the class. Derpy had been hoping to get in one more practice round before the real thing, but there was no time. "This is it," Silver whispered. "The big one! I'll be right here if you need me."

"You're not coming with me?" Derpy asked nervously.

"You know Rain won't make fun of you if I'm around," Silver replied as he sat down at the seat. "Don't worry. Just remember what we went over, walk over there with confidence, and let her have it!"

Derpy swallowed hard. "A-alright," she stuttered as she started over towards Rain.

"Oh wait!" Silver suddenly said. "One more thing!" Derpy looked back to hear what he had to say, but instead, he took her hand and leaned her towards him as if to tell her a secret. What happened next though was far from what she expected. When Derpy's head was about an inch from Silver's, he quickly leaned over and gave Derpy a small peck on her cheek. At that point, Derpy's mind started spinning. Her nervousness was replaced with complete and utter bliss. She quickly straightened up and looked around. Nobody noticed. She looked back at Silver, her hand upon her cheek and her face blushing furiously. "For good luck," he smiled back.

At that point, that kiss was just what Derpy needed, because her confidence went through the roof. Derpy sucked in a breath and walked back towards her desk. As she neared it, just like clockwork, Rain stopped in front of her with her smug grin. "Well well! If it isn't the Klutz of the Clouds!"

"Uh...hi Rain," Derpy replied. "Nice...morning huh?" Derpy looked back at Silver nervously and he gave her a thumbs up.

"It was until I had to look at your silly eyes," Rain said. "I mean, I don't know how you live with yourself looking like that." She laughed out loud as some others around murmured loudly. Derpy hastily thought of a good comeback.

"Very carefully!" she responded with a smile. Rain stopped laughing immediately and looked at Derpy both shocked and confused. Normally, this would be the time that Derpy would lower her head and say nothing, so Rain was not expecting an answer like that. Once she saw Rain's expression, Derpy became more confident and happily continued, "I mean, it's a bit hard sometimes, but I just go with the flow."

"Yeah...well..." Rain stuttered, trying to regain her smug composure, "I would just hate it if I knew I was going to trip over my own feet everyday. In fact, I bet you've already made a fool out of yourself." More murmurs from around the room.

"Actually, yes," Derpy happily answered, once again stunning Rain and the class. "I was getting out of bed this morning and literally FELL out of bed. I just don't know what went wrong!" Derpy chuckled as Rain just stared on. By now, the entire class was watching the two pegasus-girls go at it, and no one knew what was coming next. Silver just watched with a big smile on his face as Derpy was able to retort with a happy attitude.

Rain continued to stammer, thinking of something witty to say, but all that came out was, "You're ugly and stupid!"

Derpy was surprised. Normally, Rain was more clever than that with her insults, but she must've been really desperate to get under her skin if she used an insult like that, but all it did was show Derpy, and the rest of the class, that she was losing this battle, and it just made Derpy more confident. "I suppose I could bring my grades up some more," Derpy replied happily, "and I didn't wear any makeup today. Then again, I don't really wear makeup. Never really liked the stuff, but it works for you Rain. You look really pretty. Are YOU wearing makeup?"

The whole class started murmuring even more. No one had ever heard Derpy happily make fun of herself OR compliment Rain before. As the rest of the class stared on, Silver started to lightly chuckle as he tried to contain his full laughter. As for Rain, she was at a loss for words. She didn't know how to comeback from that. All she did was stammer and try to start an insult, like, "Well...you're...and...your..." Finally, she grunted, "Whatever loser," and stomped back to her own desk finally defeated. The rest of the class stared at Derpy like she had just slain a dragon or something. Derpy looked happily at Silver who smiled big and gave an even bigger thumbs up. Derpy was in pure bliss, and couldn't stop smiling. At that point, Mr. Aero entered the classroom and the lesson began.

After class, Derpy met up with Silver in the hall. "Way to go Derpy!" Silver happily said, "You did great! How do you feel?"

"I feel...GREAT!" Derpy said with a smile. "I was nervous at first, but now I feel amazing! I feel like I could fly 100 miles per hour! I've never felt so...bubbly in a while!"

"That's great!" Silver responded as he placed her hand on her shoulder. Just as they were about to go to their next class, they were stopped by Rainbow Dash, one of the school's star athletes.

"Hey Derpy!" Rainbow said. "I saw what went down between you and Rain! You were so awesome!"

"Thanks Rainbow," Derpy said, blushing a little at the compliment.

"Hey, you and Silver wanna sit with some of us at lunch?" Rainbow asked.

Derpy's eyes went wide and her ears perked up a bit. No one had ever asked her to sit with them for lunch before. Derpy looked excitedly at Silver, who nodded, and turned back to Rainbow. "Sure."

"Cool," Rainbow smiled as she turned to leave. "See you then."

As she zoomed off down the hall, Derpy looked happily at Silver. "I think this new attitude of mine is paying off!"

"Looks like!" Silver chuckled as he and Derpy walked to their next class.

"So...what happens now?" Derpy asked.

Silver smiled as he replied, "Now...change will take a turn for the better!

And it DID change for the better! After that day, something happened in Derpy's once depressing life. The new hope that sparked when Silver first defended her had started to grow even more rapidly than before. Derpy's life was starting to change so much. Not only did more people start talking to Derpy, but they even invited her to sit with them at lunch and join them in groups for making projects. Not only that, but Rain was never able to bother her after that. Though she tried harder than before, Rain could not break Derpy. Making fun of herself and showing happiness and kindness really worked for her, because Rain couldn't get a single hit on her, and after a while, she quit trying altogether. Through the combination of more friends and no more harassment, that bubbly attitude that once was so small within Derpy grew more and more, and Derpy showed more of it every day. As Derpy would walk down the halls, she would be greeted by more and more people, and each time, she would respond with an even more happier, "Hello." After a few weeks, Derpy was showing the full blast of her bubbly attitude, and it made others smile. Though Derpy wasn't just becoming a nice smile. One particular day, Derpy and Silver were walking down the halls when they heard a familiar voice, "You really ought to watch where you're going Cluttershy!" The two knew who it was immediately as they traveled around the corner to see what was going on. Sure enough, there was Rain, now snapping at timid little Fluttershy for accidentally bumping into her.

"I'm so sorry," Fluttershy said in her sweet and soft voice. "I was distracted a-a-and I didn't see you..."

"That was obvious," Rain snapped. "What were you thinking about? How the only friends you have are animals because you're so ugly?" Fluttershy backed away slowly as a tear started to form in her eyes. Silver stepped forward to say something, but someone else beat him to it.

"Ah c'mon Rain," Derpy said, walking forward. "Leave her alone."

Rain turned around and sneered at her. "Stay out of this Derp-face, or you're next."

"Why do you do this Rain?" Derpy asked sincerely, "You bring others down to build yourself up? What's the point? Others know you are already beautiful on the outside, so why don't you try being beautiful on the inside too? Like Fluttershy." Rain stared at Derpy, trying to think of something to say, but as usual, she just huffed in anger and stomped off. Derpy went over to a weeping Fluttershy. "You ok?"

"Yeah," Fluttershy responded as she wiped her eyes. Derpy wrapped her in a comforting hug.

"Don't let anyone tell you that you're not pretty, cause it's not true," Derpy said in her ear. "Just keep your chin up and remember to be joyful, no matter how hard it may seem! And don't forget that you have a friend in me."

"Ok," Fluttershy said with a smile as she broke the hug. "Thanks Derpy!" She then gathered her books and continued down the hall. Derpy turned back to Silver who had a big smile on his face. Nothing needed to be said about it. Derpy was starting to change others as well, just like Silver did for her. And with that, the two continued down toward their class.

News spread quickly of Derpy standing up for Fluttershy, and everyone was both touched and amazed. It didn't stop there though. Whenever Derpy and Silver saw a saddened face, they did their best to lift their spirits and give them encouragement, and it worked. Pretty soon, the classmates were going to the two just to brighten their own days, and Derpy and Silver couldn't be happier. All the acts of kindness and optimism didn't just stop at having others stop by for a smile though. When December hit, an announcement was made to the students. It was during first period, where Derpy and Silver had class together, when the principal's voice came over the intercom.

"Attention students! The nominations for the student awards have been chosen, elected by you." Everyone stopped what they were doing and listened intently. "For 'Most Athletic', the nominees are Rainbow Dash, Thunderlane, and Blossomforth." The students clapped a little for Rainbow and Blossom, who were in the period. "The nominees for 'Best Smile' are Flitter and Silverspeed'." Another round of clapping. "The 'nominee' for 'Most Popular' is Rain Storm." Rain stood up and gave a homecoming wave with a smile to match as the class applauded. The principal continued with a few more award nominees until the last one sounded through. "And finally, the nominees for 'Most Likely to Brighten Your Day' are...Derpy and Silver Lining. That is all."

An even louder applause broke loose as the class cheered for Derpy and Silver. The applause was even louder than Rain's. Silver sat there with a humble smile on his face, while Derpy was in complete shock. She had NEVER been nominated for ANYTHING before, and now she, the once very depressing loner, was in the runnings for "Most Likely to Brighten Your Day." And the best part was that she knew that Silver deserved it just as much, nay, even more than her. Derpy glanced over at Rain to see that she was just as shocked, possibly even more, than she was. She then turned back to the front of the class with a scowl on her face. If you looked close enough, you could see a hint of green rising up in her face. After class, Derpy and Silver talked about the award as they walked to their next class.

"I isn't fair for just ONE of us to get the award," Silver said, "so let's make an agreement that whoever gets it, splits it with the latter."

"You're on!" Derpy replied happily as they shook hands in agreement.

Whatever the case was, it seemed that the nomination for the award made Derpy even more popular than before. She found herself talking to so many classmates, wanting to meet her and spend time with her, and she was willing to try and talk to all of them. Though through all the friends that she was starting to form, Derpy didn't, for a second, forget her best friend. That's what Silver was to her. He wasn't just another friend, he was her best friend, and she knew Silver felt the same way. Even with the growing popularity, Derpy never decreased her time with him. They still sat together at lunch, walked to classes together, and walked each other home. Nothing could break those two apart.

As the days grew shorter and the snow began to fall, winter break was around before anyone knew it. The students were really excited for this, because for where there is winter, there is Hearth's Warming Eve, everybody's favorite holiday. A time when songs are sung, beautiful decorations are displayed, and families come together to join in merriment and gift giving. Normally, Derpy would expect another year alone with no family or friends, but this year couldn't have been more different. After finding out that Derpy spent the holiday alone, Silver immediately invited her to stay with him for the day. Derpy couldn't have said yes any faster. The two spent the day before putting up decorations, playing in the snow, singing their favorite carols, and all of the above. It was the best holiday Derpy ever had, and it wasn't even the real day yet. On the morning of Hearth's Warming, the two pegasi zoomed to Silver's living room where they had each placed a brightly-wrapped gift under the small tree. Silver's gift was wrapped in shiny silver paper (what else) with a nice red ribbon around it, while Derpy's was sky blue paper with little snowmen on it. The two quickly grabbed a mug of hot chocolate and sat down by the tree to exchange their gifts.

"Happy Hearth's Warming, Silver!" Derpy smiled as she handed the shiny box to Silver. He took it with a smile and started to tear the paper off. When he got to the cardboard box underneath, he opened that as well and looked inside. A big smile spread across his face as he reached in the box and pulled out a bright yellow sweatshirt with his own cutie mark on the front.

"Derpy! This is awesome!" Silver said. "How did you get this?"

"I went to a young unicorn seamstress in Ponyville," Derpy replied. "It was no big deal."

"Thanks," Silver said happily as he reached for his own gift to Derpy. "Here you go!" Derpy took the gift. It was a bit small, but it was long; about the length of a drinking straw. Derpy looked up at Silver, gave a small smile, and tore into the paper. It didn't take long for her to get to a black box that opened on its side. Derpy slowly opened it, and when she saw what was inside, her mouth fell open in awe. Inside was a gold necklace with little sapphire gems around it and a front gem the size of a marble that was carved into the shape of a blueberry muffin. Derpy couldn't help but tear up a bit as she took it out and examined it closer.

"Oh Silver," she said in amazement. "It's beautiful! I love it!"

"I'm glad," he replied. "I went to this customizable jeweler and he gave me a good bargain on it. Wanna try it on?" Derpy nodded as they both stood up and went to the mirror by the door. Derpy turned to face the mirror as Silver stood behind her reached his arm in front to portray the necklace. As he fastened the chain with his hand and teeth, very skillfully, Derpy couldn't help but pick up a delightful scent coming from Silver. It was like a combination of pine needles and vanilla, and it made her nostrils flare in a good way. Normally Derpy didn't notice how Silver smelled, but with him right behind her, she couldn't help but pick up on the scent. It felt good to smell him. Her mind began to daze as Derpy took another breath, taking in the wonderful smell, but soon snapped out of it as he spoke. "There. Let's see you."

Derpy slowly turned around to face Silver. When she looked up, she almost jumped. Silver was closer than she thought, and when she looked into his eyes, Derpy couldn't help but notice that they were also a shade of yellow. Derpy never focused enough to notice them, but knowing that she wasn't the only one with yellow eyes made Derpy blush. She also noticed that in the light, Silver looked quite, well, handsome. Derpy had always thought of him as decent-looking, but now, he just looked amazing. His silver hair that barely made it down to his ears, his nice waistline, some nice muscle tone...

"Hey Derpy! Are you alright?"

Derpy snapped back out of her trance and looked back at Silver. "Yeah I'm fine. I love my gift! Thank you."

"No problem Derpy," Silver replied with a soft grin. "Happy Hearth's Warming." He then reached out his arm and the two embraced in a nice hug. Derpy sighed dreamily as she leaned her head on his chest. His embrace felt so warm and comforting that she didn't want to let him go. She just wanted to stay locked in his arm for the rest of her life, not having anything to worry about, because all she needed was right with her. Derpy's heart was going about a mile a minute as she felt herself blushing. What was going on with her? She had never felt this way around Silver before, but something was different. Was it possible? Through all the times they've spent together and the heartaches that he helped her with, was she finally figuring it out? It took all this time and a holiday to know for sure, but as Derpy stood there with Silver's arm around her, she realized something new. Something that she couldn't deny after all the signs.

Derpy had feelings for Silver.


	8. An Unforgettable Night

Derpy had never really considered wanting a boyfriend before. She was always too depressed or scared to even try, thinking that no boy would want to date her of all people. Most of the guys in school were attracted to Rain after all, and those who were "beneath" her would still admire her from afar. Besides that, Derpy never found that one guy who she really connected with. That is until she met Silver Lining. He was the first one to ever acknowledge her and look at her heart instead of her eyes. He never said a bad word about her, nor anyone else for that matter, and looked out for her. He was funny, generous, and Derpy would be lying if she said he wasn't the least bit handsome. It didn't matter that he didn't have an arm. His joyful attitude and golden kindness was what attracted Derpy the most. It may have taken her a while, but she now realized that Silver would be the perfect boyfriend. The only thing was...how would she ask him? Derpy wasn't the most confident when it came to asking someone out. Granted, she never really asked anyone out before, but it was still a nerve-racking experience. As the new year came and the students returned for their second half of school, Derpy continued to think of how she could ask out Silver. Then, one morning in late January, an announcement was made during homeroom that made Derpy's day.

"Good morning students. This is a reminder that help for the upcoming Hearts and Hooves Dance is needed for setting up. Signup sheets are posted on the board outside the office. Thank you."

The Hearts and Hooves Dance! Of course! Hearts and Hooves Day was the most romantic holiday of the year, and every year, the school would host a dance. Derpy never went before for obvious reasons, but this year was different. This was her golden opportunity to move in her relationship with Silver. If she could play her cards right, she might get a boyfriend by the end of the evening. Planning this was going to be the easy part though. It was actually asking him that would be the challenge. Every time Derpy had the opportunity to ask, she chickened out at the last minute. And to her horror, she wasn't the only one wanting to go with him. Derpy would have a heart attack whenever a girl asked Silver. Luckily he declined each offer, but who knew how long that was going to last? It wasn't until the day of the dance that Derpy finally slapped some courage into herself.

"C'mon Derpy!" she motivated herself as she sat across from him at lunch. "This is Silver we're talking about! He's not going to think any less of you whether he says yes or no. Just go for it!" Now was the time. It was do or die. Gathering up all of the courage she could, Derpy took in a deep breath, but before she could say anything, Silver was the first to speak.

"Hey, Derpy?"

Derpy stopped and stared at the yellow-eyed boy in front of her, "Uh...yeah Silver?"

As Silver spoke, Derpy couldn't help but notice a trace of hesitation and nervousness in his voice. "I...I was just wondering. Were you planning on going to the...well...Hearts and Hooves Dance tonight?" Derpy's mind jolted to attention and her insides started to burst with excitement. Was he going to...

"Uh...I don't know," Derpy nervously replied. "Why?"

"Would you...like to go...with me?" Silver asked.

That did it. That was all it took to turn Derpy's insides into a giant fireworks display. As she just stared at Silver calmly, inside, her mind was doing a river dance, the hokey-pokey, and every other kind of celebratory dance you could think of. Fireworks were going off, noise makers were sounding, a thunderous applause was kicking in, and she couldn't tell for sure, but Derpy could've sworn that she heard "We Are the Champions" playing in the background. She was in pure bliss.

"Derpy?"

Derpy quickly snapped back into reality as she realized that Silver was still waiting for her answer. Keeping her composure, Derpy calmly replied, "That sounds like fun. I'd love to go with you."

"Great!" Silver said happily. "How about I meet you outside the school at 8:00?"

"Sounds good," Derpy replied. At that point, the warning bell rang, and Silver gathered his stuff, waved good-bye to Derpy, and headed towards his next class. As soon as she could see him round the corner, all of Derpy's bliss had broken free of its bond as Derpy squealed with excitement. She jumped up and began to dance around the table, not caring how many others were staring at her with both concern and curiosity. How could Derpy care? All of her dreams had come true. Not only was her depression gone for good, not only had she made many new friends, but she was going to the Hearts and Hooves Dance with the guy of her dreams. How could anything ruin the moment? Suddenly, Derpy stopped as she realized that there WAS something wrong.

Derpy didn't own a dress.

It wasn't like she didn't have enough money to buy one, it was just that there didn't seem to be any need for a dress. She never went to any social gatherings or formal events. The last time she wore a dress was when she went to her mother's funeral, and Derpy had grown quite a bit since her freshman year. She couldn't even find THAT dress if she wanted to. Derpy wanted to look her absolute best for Silver, and she wasn't going to wear a bleak old thing anyway. This was a mission to show not only Silver, but the entire school that she could look good. So that day after school, Derpy flew straight for Ponyville. She knew the perfect shop to go to for clothes, because it was the place where she got Silver's Hearth's Warming gift. As she reached the Carousel Boutique, Derpy pushed opened the door and a little bell rang that sounded throughout the place.

"I'll be right with you darling," a feminine voice called from the back. It was the voice of Rarity, who ran the Boutique. Derpy had gotten acquainted with her when she got Silver's gift. Rarity was a unicorn-girl with a Canterlot personality (a bit stuck-up and fashion obsessed), but she had a generous nature and a beautiful figure. Derpy didn't waste any time in pointing out the dress section of the shop. Heading towards the racks, she looked over the variety of dresses with a multitude of colors, designs, and sizes. As she browsed, Rarity came out from the back, wearing her usual snow-white business dress and her blue hair in a bun. "Welcome to the Carousel Bouti...oh! Hello again Derpy!"

"Hi Rarity," Derpy happily responded. "I'm looking for a dress for tonight's Hearts and Hooves Dance."

"Oh," Rarity said with a smile. "Well what kind of dress were you thinking of?"

"Nothing too fancy," Derpy responded as she continued to look through the multitude of fabric. "I want to make a good impression, but I don't want to overdo it."

"Say no more!" Rarity said as she walked over to the dresses and pulled out a huge hull of them. She draped them over a chair and one by one, lifted each dress to Derpy's body, examining the size and color. Derpy didn't say a word while Rarity worked. "No...no...no...oh heavens no! Too green...too blue...too poofy...too bland...so darling, you said that you want to make a good impression to your classmates?"

"Only one in particular," Derpy said as she felt herself blush. "Silver Lining. He-" Before she could say anymore, Rarity gasped and dropped the dress she was holding. Her expression changed as her stunned look turned into a coy grin.

"You want to woo Silver, don't you?" Rarity asked with romantic curiosity.

Derpy felt herself blush even more as she answered, "Well...I guess you could call it that."

"This...changes...EVERYTHING!" Rarity shouted as she grabbed the dresses and threw them aside. Derpy watched as Rarity ran quick as a flash to her back office. Moments later, she returned with measuring tape, a roll of fabric, and her red glasses on her face. Derpy was about to ask what was going on, until Rarity motioned her to extend her arm. She did so and Rarity quickly measured it. She then took Derpy's leg and measured that as well. She did the same with her waist, neck, and bust. After measuring, Rarity grabbed her fabric, sat down at the sewing machine, and began to sew. Derpy watched quietly as Rarity stared intently at the fabric as it passed under the needle. After a while though, Derpy felt as if she needed to say something.

"So...should I come back later?" she asked quietly.

"No need darling!" Rarity answered. "What time are you meeting him?"

"Eight..." Derpy responded.

"Then I should have enough time," Rarity happily said. "I'm going to go full speed on this thing, and then afterwards, I'm taking you to the salon to redo your hair and help with makeup."

"What?" Derpy asked, shocked at Rarity's sudden super generosity. "Why?"

"Because dear," Rarity replied, "this isn't just a regular night for you. This is the night you woo the man of your dreams!" Derpy blushed again at the term Man of her Dreams. "I'm not just going to MAKE you the perfect dress, but I'm going to help you look UNFORGETTABLE! Trust me darling, by the time I'm done with you, he won't be able to take his eyes off of you!"

Derpy smiled and shrugged. It was worth a shot right?

The time of the dance was at hand as the pegasi students filed into the red and white gymnasium, wearing their absolute finest. The gym was decorated, as said, all in reds, pinks, and whites. Sashes hung from the walls, heart-shaped balloons were tied to the bleachers, and a red and white table sat in the corner holding heart-shaped cookies and red punch. The DJ booth was set at the front, and a pop-sounding tune was booming out of the speakers. As the clock went from 7:30 to 8:00, more and more students filed in. It seemed like the entire school was there. Rainbow Dash had come with Thunderlane, Flitter had come with a friend from her math class named Typhoon, and even Fluttershy had arrived with the most muscular, but soft-hearted pegasus-boy, Bulk Biceps. Everyone immediately started dancing, that is except one.

Silver stood outside, waiting for his date. He was wearing a pale yellow dress shirt (which had the left sleeve tucked in for obvious reasons) with a gray and white striped tie. As he stood by the doors to the inside, he nervously bounced up and down steadily with his heels, going over what he was going to do in his head. "Alright Silver, remember to be a gentleman. Open the door for her, offer a drink, be a defending shoulder if needed, and don't make any hasty moves unless she actually doesn't mind it. This is going to be fine. Just another night with-"

"Silver?"

Snapping out of his trance, Silver straightened up and said, "Hello Derpy. Glad you could ma-" As he looked up at the girl in front of him, his mouth went numb from what he saw.

Derpy had on a beautiful light gray dress with little yellow sashes that came down to her knees. Her hair was put up in a most elegant fashion, it was tied together with a cute little gray bow, and around her neck, she wore the muffin necklace she got for Hearth's Warming. Her face was shining with blush that accented her cheeks in the most adorable way, and her eyes, lazy or no, sparkled from the subtle glitter around them. Rarity had really gone all out with her, and in Silver's eyes, she was the most beautiful pegasus in the sky. Silver's mouth opened and closed as he tried to think of something to say, but what finally came out was just, "Wow..."

"What's wrong?" Derpy asked, worried that she may have overdone it. "It isn't too much is it?" Silver finally got back his nerves and walked up to Derpy with a soft smile on his face.

"You look absolutely stunning," he said softly. Derpy blushed hard as she turned her head and smiled sweetly. She then turned back to see Silver extending his right elbow for her, and she happily wrapped her arms around it. As they walked towards the school doors, Silver couldn't take his eyes off of Derpy, which turned out to be a bad idea as he ran into the corner of the door. As he recoiled and placed a hand on his now aching head, he quickly shrugged it off and, now blushing with embarrassment, opened the door for his date. As they entered the gym, Derpy looked around nervously, wondering if she will be stared at, whether in the good or bad way. As people started to notice her however, no one could look away. Slowly but surely, more and more students stopped to look at the entering couple with an expression of awe on their faces. The only one who didn't express this was, surprise surprise, Rain, who just scoffed and looked away.

Even so, nothing could ruin the fun that went on throughout the night. Though Derpy WAS a little nervous about dancing, the motivation from her friends soon encouraged her to go all out, and boy did she ever. Derpy had never laughed as hard or danced as much as she did that evening. As the tunes switched from pop to rock to techno to hip hop, the dancing didn't die. There were moments during the evening where Derpy accidentally would trip on her own feet, but surprisingly, she just laughed it off and said, "I just don't know what went wrong." What made the night even better was classmates constantly coming up to Derpy and Silver saying that they looked great together, which made Derpy blush furiously. It was a night that Derpy never wanted to end, but as the night winded down, she was getting more and more anxious due to the fact that she still didn't tell Silver how she felt, and this was the whole reason for her wanting to come. She had opportunities, but was too nervous to even attempt it. The night was about over though, and the clock would soon strike 10. Her Cinderella story was NOT going to end, not on that night. As Derpy sat on the bleachers, talking and listening to Silver, a scenario was playing over and over in her mind. How she would approach it, hopes for how he would react, and what to do afterwards.

It wasn't long before the current pop tune ended, a warning announcement was made, telling the students that one more song would be played, and then to Derpy's further nervousness, a slow song started to play. Derpy watched as couples partnered up and headed towards the middle of the floor. Derpy watched with anxious eyes as she saw the mens' arms wrap around the waists of their partners, and the ladies' extending their arms up around the shoulders of theirs. If there was any time to do what she needed to do, it was now. Derpy took a deep breath and turned towards Silver, who was not beside her anymore. Instead, he was right in front of her with an outstretched hand.

"Shall we?" Silver asked. Derpy blushed even harder and slowly took his hand. As he led her out onto the floor, she felt her heart going a mile a minute. Any faster and her heart could race in the Equestrian 500. When they got to an open spot, Silver placed his right arm around Derpy's waist, which resulted in a soft squeak from the pegasus-girl. Derpy soon caught her composure and put her right arm on Silver's shoulder. She then extended her left arm to take his, but soon blushed in embarrassment as she remembered that it wasn't there. She looked up to Silver, who was softly smiling as if to say, "It's alright," and she placed her left arm on his other shoulder. The two then began to sway back and forth as their eyes were glued to each other. Neither one spoke as they just focused on their eyes and the lyrics to the song.

 _Near, far, wherever you are_

 _I believe that the heart does go on_

 _Once more you open the door_

 _And you're here in my heart_

 _And my heart will go on and on_

Derpy knew the song quite well, since she had seen Titanic, like, 20 times. As the song continued to play, the two continued to stare, showing a soft tone of caring on their faces, with the occasional small wince from Silver due to Derpy stepping on his foot, but he didn't care. About halfway through the song, Silver finally spoke. "This was really fun tonight Derpy! I'm glad you came."

"Yeah, me too," Derpy said softly. "To be honest, I was going to...ask you."

"Really?"

"Y-yeah. I wanted to invite you because...well..." Derpy paused as she felt her heart racing again. The nervousness was catching up to her, but it wasn't going to stop her this time. She was too far to turn back now. "...I wanted to say...thank you. For everything."

"Oh Derpy," Silver scoffed teasingly, "it was nothing,"

"No! It's everything!" Derpy said more intently. "I was on the verge of suicide before I met you. Alone, with not a friend in the world. I thought things were never going to change. You changed me in so many ways, and I'll be forever grateful. You mean the WORLD to me!" Derpy's eyes widened and her face turned beet red after she realized what she just said. She looked at Silver, who had a slight expression of nervousness on his face. There was a slight pause as they continued to dance, until Silver spoke again.

"I'd like to thank you too Derpy."

"Why?" she asked."I didn't do anything."

"Yes you did. I have had a few friends in my life, some more memorable than others, but you? You have changed me in so many ways too. Ways that no other friend has been able to do. I care about you a lot Derpy, and I wouldn't trade a single day spent with you for anything."

Derpy smiled softly, a small tear starting to appear in her eye. At that point, Derpy took a bigger step forward, and placed her head on Silver's chest. Silver didn't react any differently as they continued to dance. As they went on, Derpy noticed that the song was winding down, so if she was going to do something, it had to be then. Sucking up all the courage she could, without even looking up, Derpy asked, "Have you ever been kissed Silver?"

At that point, the swaying stopped and Derpy looked up to see that Silver's face had changed completely. He now was beet red with a little sweat appearing on his brow. "Ah...well..." Silver stammered as he looked around nervously, "I have-"

"Family members don't count," Derpy quickly stated. Silver closed his mouth again as he looked around again, his face looking like it was going to start whistling that the tea was ready at any moment. Suddenly, Silver looked at Derpy again, took a deep breath to relax, and stated calmly,

"No. I haven't."

Derpy's heart began to pound again as she took another step forward and leaned in towards Silver. "Can I ask you something?" she asked more softly.

"Sure," Silver replied just as softly.

At this point, Derpy's nervousness was blown away by her instinct as she started to lean her head towards his, her eyes slowly starting to close. "If I were to try and kiss you right now, would...would you back away?"

Silver reacted in the same way as his head started to lean closer to hers. Their lips grew closer and closer together. Derpy could feel his breath on hers. Her heart was going about a mile a second now, and her lips were trembling, but it didn't matter anymore. He was all she could think about. He was all that was on her mind. Nothing else mattered. Then, before she could think of what to do next, she heard Silver respond in a whisper, "You could try and find out."

That was all it took. No longer thinking, not caring about anything else around her, Derpy closed the gap and pressed her lips up against Silver Lining's. Nothing could come close to comparing the bliss that Derpy was going through. As their lips held against each other. A barrage of fireworks were going off. The climax of the song that was playing was louder than ever before. It was literally the happiest that Derpy felt in a long, long time. All the other times with Silver didn't even come as close as the moment she was experiencing at that second. The two stayed like that for what seemed like a minute, but turned out to be just about 12 seconds. Though Derpy didn't want it to end, she knew it had to come to an end at some point. As the two broke the kiss, they opened their eyes and looked at each other, grinning ear to ear. Derpy opened her mouth to say something spectacular, but all that came out was, "Wow..."

"Wow," Silver repeated as he stared at Derpy. Even though it was over, Silver continued to breath heavily and placed his hand up to his heart. "Wow," he said again.

"I know," Derpy responded dreamily. "I've been struck by Cupid's arrow too,"

"Wow," Silver said again, this time with what seemed like a loss of breath in his voice, like he was trying to say it, but was having trouble. Soon, the hand placed gently on his heart soon turned into his grasping it and breathing even more heavily. Derpy giggle a little bit as she thought that Silver was just overacting his reaction to the kiss.

"Kinda putting it on a little thick there, aren't we sport?" Derpy asked jokingly. Suddenly, Derpy noticed that Silver's face was no longer a look of amazement, but of panic! His breathing continued to grow more rapidly as Derpy stopped laughing to see Silver drop to his knees, still clutching his chest. "S-Silver? Are you ok?" Derpy asked. Attention to Silver started attracting more students as they noticed him and rushed over to see what was going on. Suddenly, Silver dropped to the floor, still clutching his chest, his eyes looking wide and terrified. It was at that point that Derpy realized it. Silver was having a heart attack!

"Oh no..." Derpy said quietly as she leaned over Silver. She quickly got down and started to support his head on her lap. "Oh no no no no no! Silver! SILVER!" Derpy started to panic more as more and more students crowded around, mumbling anxiously about what was going on. "SOMEBODY CALL 911!" Derpy screamed out. Students quickly pulled out cell phones and started to dial. Soon, the whole gym was filled with students hastily talking to 911 in a panicked tone as Derpy continued to hold Silver's head as he gasped for air. Tears came to Derpy's eyes as she repeated, "You're going to be alright Silver! Hold on! HOLD ON!"

Derpy wouldn't never guessed that she would be sitting in the Cloudsdale Hospital after her big night, but there she was; sitting in the waiting room outside the ER, still in her dress, a worried look on her face. After the ambulance came, they asked Derpy to come with them, seeing as she was the one closest to Silver. When they arrived, the doctors quickly lifted Silver onto a gurney, and rolled him into the ER. Derpy was asked to wait in the next room. After what seemed like half an hour, the doors to the waiting room opened and Derpy looked up anxiously to see Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Thunderlane, and Blossomforth come in. Though she was expecting the doctors, it was nice to see them come in and comfort her. It showed that they really cared. The five sat there and talked for a bit, until finally, after what seemed like an hour, the doctor came out. Derpy didn't hesitate to get up and walk over. "How is he doctor?" she asked.

The doctor looked down at the ground for a second and sighed. Derpy knew in an instant that that wasn't a good sign. Finally, the doctor looked up and said, "Miss Derpy, I'm not going to sugarcoat it. It doesn't look good for Mr. Lining." At that point, Derpy's insides had turned to lead as it felt as if everything inside had dropped down to Derpy's stomach.

"W-what do you mean?" Derpy asked intently.

"Well," the doctor said, "I'm afraid that the cancer had spread farther than we previously thought. After the amputation, we thought that it would slow down the process, and for a time it did, but only for a little bit. I'm sorry to say that the cancer had reached his heart."

"Isn't there anything that can be done?" Derpy asked as she felt her eyes growing puffy.

"Even if we tried to operate, there would be only a 10% chance of him surviving it," the doctor calmly responded. "Operating on the heart is a risky thing Miss Derpy. I'm afraid there's nothing more we can do."

Derpy froze in place, her face showing an expression of pure disbelief. It no longer felt as if her insides were turned into lead, because now it felt as if she had no insides at all. How did it happen? How did a night of pure wonder and bliss turn into her best friend in all of history dying of cancer? It was as if someone had just sucker punched Derpy directly into the heart and it shattered into a million pieces. As Derpy stood there, she could feel the tears starting to come, but she did her best to hold them back. She looked back at the doctor and asked, "How long does he have?" There was nothing else to ask. Since there was no hope of saving him, how could she ask anything else?

"You...might want to say your good-byes," the doctor sadly responded as he walked away. The other four, having heard all of that, all got up and walked over to Derpy and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Derpy? You ok?" Blossom asked.

At first, Derpy wanted to turn around and scold that she WASN'T ok and that it was a stupid question to begin with, but she knew that they all meant well. Turning to the others, she softly replied, "I just want to be alone with him." The others nodded respectfully and turned to leave, leaving Derpy standing in front of the doors to Silver's room. Derpy stared at the door for a minute, contemplating on what he must've been feeling in there. She contemplated her own feelings of how she would react to him or how each of them would handle this situation. She didn't want to leave him hanging though. Silver was her best friend, and at that point, he needed her just as much as she needed him. So, gathering up her courage and restraint, Derpy opened the double doors and walked through.

As soon as she entered the room, Derpy knew she didn't like the atmosphere. She saw the many multi-colored wires going to behind a curtain that would certainly lead to Silver's bed. She heard the beeping of a heart monitor, going at a steady pace. The whole room was even a little darker than she expected, setting a dull tone to the situation. As Derpy neared the curtained off bed, she began to imagine the kind of pain that Silver was going through and how sickly he must've looked. No matter what though, she needed to be ready to be strong for him, as he was for her. She then grabbed the curtain and gently pulled it to the side, revealing the barely awake man laying in front of her. Derpy smiled softly. Even with all the wires connected to him, even with his pale complexion, he was still so handsome to her. A slight cough from her made Silver stir a bit, then turned to face Derpy. A smile came across his face as Silver said in a weak tone of voice, "Hi Derpy."

"Hi Silver," Derpy responded, sitting on the corner of the bed. Seeing him like this, Derpy could feel the tears trying to break their way through, but she held them back. "H-how are you doing?" Derpy mentally slapped herself. That was a stupid question, asking how a dying cancer patient was doing. Silver didn't seem to care as he sighed.

"I could be better," he said jokingly. "It could be worse of course. The service here is quite nice." Silver chuckled weakly as Derpy just stared in silent amazement. Even in the face of death itself, Silver was STILL optimistic. It was quite amazing indeed.

"I guess the doctor already told you, you know, the news," Derpy quietly said as she tried to hide the fact she was still fighting back tears.

Silver's expression changed to a slight frown. "Yeah," he responded. "Too bad. I was kinda hoping to see where our relationship would go." As he spoke, Derpy noticed that at the corner of Silver's eye, a tear was starting to form. "This may sound a bit cheesy, but I was looking forward to holding hands with you as we walked down the hall at school, not caring who was looking. To snuggling close together in front of a fire. To...to seeing if I could see you in a white gown someday."

That was it. That was all it took to break the fight. Derpy wanted that too. She was looking forward to dating him. She wanted to see if the time would come for her to walk down the aisle toward him, wearing a white gown with a veil. She didn't want him to go. At that point, Derpy stopped the fighting and the tears started to flow like a river. Derpy lost all composure as she lowered her head down into Silver's lap and started to sob. "Now now Derpy," Silver said as he rubbed the back of her head. "Don't cry. It'll be alright."

"HOW DO YOU KNOW?!" Derpy sorrowfully scolded. "It isn't fair! Why did it have to happen to you? Why did it have to happen tonight? Why do I have to lose the only man I ever truly cared about? We were gonna start dating! It isn't fair!" She then covered her face and continued to cry.

"I know it hurts Derpy," Silver stated as he started to cry as well. "I know that it isn't fair. I'm not fully sure why this has to happen to me. I can't say that I'm not a little afraid, but I know this; it will all work out ok. Everyone must die someday Derpy. We never know when that time will come, but when it does, no matter when it is, no matter what the cause, we have to believe that things will work out for the better."

"How can I be sure?" Derpy asked as the tears started to blur her vision. "I don't know how it could work out for the better! You've done so much for me over the months! I wouldn't BE HERE if it weren't for you! I'm so scared! I lost my mom! I don't want to lose you too! I don't want to be alone again! I don't want to be depressed again!"

"Then don't Derpy," Silver responded softly. Derpy looked at him, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Just because I'll be gone physically, it doesn't mean things have to go back to the way they were. Don't give up. Continue to fight on with that bubbly attitude that you're so famous for! Keep-" Silver winced a little as some pain went through his body, but he quickly continued. "Keep on doing what I've taught you, and never EVER forget; I will never EVER leave you! I'll be with you," He reached out a hand and placed it on Derpy's heart, "in here. Don't let the depression get the better of you! You are in control of your own life! You have the power to reject the depression, as you've always had! And always remember; I will always be grateful to you, as you were to me."

Derpy couldn't stand it anymore. In one swift motion, she wrapped her arms around him in a warm, but tight hug. As the tears continued to roll, Derpy could only think of one thing to say.

"I love you Silver Lining."

Without even breaking the hug, Silver whispered, "And I love you...Derpy..."

As Derpy held onto Silver in the silence, all that could be heard was the beeping heart monitor. The beeping continued gradually, _beep beep beep beep beep_ until suddenly, only one long continuous beep was heard. Derpy looked up at the monitor to see a flat line to match the tone flashing across the screen. Derpy broke the hug to look at her best friend one last time, and when she saw his face, the tears started to gush again as she went back to hugging his now faded body.

Silver Lining had died in Derpy's arms, with a smile on his face.


	9. You Are Never Alone

It didn't take long for news to travel across the school about Silver's death. Some didn't believe it at first, and then they saw Derpy. Her old sulking ways said it all for them. Almost all of Silver's classmates came to the funeral, and after that, the school seemed to shine a little less bright. It seemed that Silver had made a difference for so many others at Cloudsdale High, even if some of them didn't realize it until after he was gone. Of course, no one was as affected by it as Derpy. Everyone knew how close the two were, so they couldn't help but feel the pain coming off of the pegasus-girl after it happened. Derpy was the only one to talk at the funeral, due to her being the closest friend he had. The principal noticed this as well, and gave Derpy a week off from school to recuperate. It didn't matter to Derpy. It didn't matter if she was given a week or a month. Nothing could fill the hole in her heart left by Silver.

Derpy had never felt so alone in her entire life. Even the passing of her mom didn't compare, and that was pretty bad. She would occasionally get classmates come to her door with their condolences, some baked goods, and even a hug from some of them. It was nice, but the hugs she got just couldn't compare to the ones she received from Silver. The warmth of the embrace, the way she felt so secure; they just couldn't be replaced so easily. Derpy spent her days off just laying on her bed, looking up at the ceiling, thinking about the times she had with him. She would occasionally try to think of something joyful, like what Silver taught her, but every time she tried, the memories of Silver would just remind her of how he looked when he died, and it would drive her to tears. There was something else just as bad; Derpy was slowly starting to descend into depression once again. She hadn't felt her depression since before she and Silver shared backstories, but she could feel it coming back. Though she tried to fight it, the more sad memories that came to her, the more her depression would creep up little by little, and Derpy never felt more afraid. What if it would change her again like it did before? She lost her mom, and it changed her. She gained a great friend, and that changed her even more. So losing that great friend after not even a year? The depression had no better time to change her.

As the week winded down into the weekend, a sudden realization came to Derpy that she would have to go back to school! What would go down if she did? Would things continue as they have been, or would things go back to the way they were oh so long ago? An image of Rain mocking her came to Derpy's mind and she shuttered at the thought. She didn't know if she would have the strength to fight her back again, not after losing the one guy who actually taught her to stand up and be positive. As Derpy lay on her bed that Saturday night, a million thoughts and fears rushed through her head at once. How was she going to have the courage to come back at Rain's assaults? Would anyone stand up for her, or would they go back to ignoring her? Though she tried to think positive, the creeping depression kept pushing bad thoughts into Derpy's mind. It was all so much that Derpy couldn't get to sleep. She just stared at the ceiling as the thoughts barraged her mind. But as time moved on, sleep and Derpy had finally found each other, and she closed her eyes, and started to dream.

Derpy was standing on the sidewalk in front of the school. Students were leaving through the doors, so it was probably the end of the day. Derpy looked around as she wondered, "How did I end up here? I don't remember coming to school..." As she looked around, she noticed that a few yards in front of her were Rainbow Dash and Blossomforth, waving and smiling to her.

"C'mon Derpy!" Blossom shouted. "Let's go hang at my place!"

Derpy smiled slightly as she started to walk. But as she took her first step, she tripped on her leg and started to fall. Everything seemed to go into slow motion as Derpy's body fell towards the sidewalk. As Derpy landed on the pavement, everything, to Derpy's horrible surprise, shattered. It was as if the entire sidewalk and school, not to mention everything else around her, was made of glass. As soon as Derpy touched the sidewalk, the whole scene shattered like glass. As that was left was a black void with the shards of scenery floating around. Derpy, still with all fours on what used to be the ground, looked around. All she could see was the collage of shattered scenery and an endless black background. Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out in a mocking tone, "Well, well. It looks like Derp-face broke the school again! This is what happens when you let a cross-eyed bull into the china shop."

A sudden outburst of laughter rang out around Derpy, though she couldn't see anybody. Suddenly, Derpy began to fall into the black abyss, and her wings wouldn't move. As Derpy fell, all she heard was the loud, endless echo of laughter at her. Though she covered her ears, the sound bored its way though with no problem. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Derpy landed on the ground, or what she thought was the ground. As she got up, she noticed that she was still in a black void, but she was on solid ground. She looked around at the emptiness, and saw a figure, shining a few yards from her. The back was turned, but Derpy could tell that it was a woman. As she tried to examine the figure from afar, Derpy couldn't help but notice that it looked very familiar, like...

"Mom?" Derpy said aloud. She ran towards the figure, with a smile forming across her face, hoping that it really was her mom. As she approached it, she place an arm on her shoulder and started to turn the figure towards her. "Mom! I can't believe it's really-"

As Derpy finished turning, her eyes grew wide and her smile completely disappeared as the figure was indeed her mom, but she didn't look happy to see her. On the contrary, she looked absolutely livid. "M-Mom?" Derpy cautiously asked. "What's wrong?"

"YOU BROKE YOUR PROMISE!" her mother screamed furiously. The force of the scream was so great that it pushed Derpy back a few yards. When Derpy got up, her mother was gone, but her words still echoed around her, "You broke your promise." Tears began to fill Derpy's eyes as she looked around.

"No!" she shouted. "I didn't mean to! I didn't mean to break my promise! Please don't leave me again Mom!" Suddenly, Derpy realized that her voice sounded younger. She looked down at her body and noticed it LOOKED younger. It almost was like she was back in middle school again, back when the taunting began. Suddenly, Rain's voice was heard again as her began taunting.

"Look out everyone! It's the walking catastrophe!" said the cocky voice as the laughter continued. Derpy, having been overwhelmed by what was happening, started to run. Though no matter how fast she ran, she just couldn't get away from the barrage of insults that penetrated her mind.

"You're really pathetic Derp-face!"

"You'll never get any boyfriends with those freakish eyes!"

"You should try out for the circus!"

"You're a freak, and you'll always be a freak!"

As the insults continued to rain down, a chorus of a taunting chime rang out over that, as hundreds of students' voice shouted out, "Derp-face! Derp-face! Derp-face!" over and over again. Derpy covered her ears, but it did her no good. The insults just kept coming. Derpy stopped and dropped to her knees, still trying to cover her ears as tears ran down her cheeks like a stream. Suddenly, it seemed that all the sound had stopped, and Derpy looked up. As she looked around, she saw, standing a few feet from her, a standing mirror. It was one of those mirrors that showed the entire body. Derpy got up and cautiously walked towards it. As she neared the mirror, she noticed her reflection starting to appear as she got closer. When she stopped right in front however, what she saw made her scream!

On the other side of the mirror was her reflection, but it looked so different. Her hair was matted down to the sides and drooping. Her eyes looked dead with large bags under them. Her skin was completely pale and even sickly-looking. She was wearing a dark gray t-shirt, and the most horrendous part was that her arms were covered with scars, like she had just gotten 50 paper cuts in one sitting. Derpy looked at the horrific figure in front of her as the figure mimicked each of her movements like a regular reflection. As Derpy examined the reflection, a horrible thought came to her. "Is...is this me?" she asked aloud. As soon as she asked that, the reflection changed completely as its mouth curled into a devilish smile.

"It WILL be!" the reflection responded in a sinister voice that was not at all Derpy's. Suddenly, the reflection began to crawl out of the mirror as Derpy fell back with terror. As it crawled out, the reflection, once looking like a depressed Derpy, morphed into a large shadowy figure. It's body was completely black and smokey, like a shadow, but it's head still retained Derpy's look. As the creature grew in size, Derpy found herself shuffling back, being unable to stand. She eyed the beast with complete fear in her eyes as it looked at her with an evil grin. "Join with me Derpy! We will be one once again!"

"No!" Derpy screamed out. "NO! Not again!"

"You won't have a choice this time!" growled the beast as it stepped towards the shivering pegasus-girl. Derpy continued to shuffle back, but soon bumped into a black wall. She was cornered with no where to go. All she could do was watch in terror as the beast neared its target. "You will be mine again!" the beast bellowed as it leaned over Derpy. Pure terror was what Derpy was feeling, and there was no way out of it. She was alone in a black void, with depression about to take over her once again.

All she could think to do at that point, was cover her face and scream, "SOMEONE HELP MEEEEEEEEE!"

"LEAVE HER ALONE!"

Derpy opened her eyes as she saw the beast staring up at a bright blinding light with disgust. Derpy looked up herself to see the light shining down between them. As a figure lowered itself down between her and the beast, Derpy tried to see who it was, but the light was too bright. All she could see was a bright silhouette, shouting at the beast. "She doesn't need you anymore! Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" As the figure spoke, Derpy noticed that the beast was wincing and falling back, screaming and shrinking until it was gone in a blinding "poof." Derpy covered her eyes to guard against the flash, and when it had subsided, Derpy opened her eyes to see an outstretched hand, and a smiling face looking down at her. The light had dimmed, so Derpy could see the figure more clearly. He was a pegasus-boy, looking to be around her age, with shaggy silver hair and yellow eyes, like hers. She also noticed that he only had one arm as she took his hand and helped her up. As he spoke, Derpy had the strange feeling that she had seen him before. "You ok?" asked the boy.

"I'm fine, thanks," Derpy responded. "I'm Derpy. Who're you?"

"The name's Silver Lining," replied the boy. "It's a good thing I was around. That monster almost got..." Silver stopped as he noticed that Derpy had started sobbing. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"My mommy's gone," Derpy replied as she sniffled, "and I'm all alone. I'm a freak!"

"You're not a freak," Silver calmly responded.

"Look at me!" Derpy scolded as she pointed to her eyes. "I have a lazy eye and it makes me clumsy!"

"Well I have one arm," Silver retorted, pointing to his shoulder stub, "and it makes me...uh...not left-handed!" Derpy couldn't help but giggle a little at the comment. "Ah, you have a nice smile," Silver stated nicely.

"Yeah, well there's not much to smile at," Derpy responded sadly as she sat down. Silver walked over and sat down beside her as she continued to sob quietly.

"Y'know, I was in the same boat you're in," Silver quietly said. Derpy looked up with an expression of confusion. "I thought that there was nothing that could cheer me up. That is until I was told to stop focusing on the bad, and think about the good!" He turned to Derpy with a smile. "What good things happened in your life Derpy?"

"I don't remember any," Derpy quickly responded.

"C'mon!" Silver encouraged. "Think hard! Think of one good thing that came out of your life." Derpy sighed and closed her eyes. She began to try and think of a better time, but nothing was coming to her. She closed her eyes even tighter, but still nothing came. She tried rubbing her head, but no matter how hard she tried, a happy thought wouldn't come to her head. Suddenly, as Derpy was about to give up, a voice rang out in her head.

"Hey! Leave her alone!"

The voice sounded familiar, but she couldn't tell who it was. As she tried to concentrate on the voice, an image suddenly popped into Derpy's head. It was the image of her, older, in front of a school, standing in front of...a bully, it looked like, but what was her name? Rain! The memory came back as she remembered the bully was named Rain Storm. And standing between her and Rain, standing up for her, was a tall pegasus-boy that looked suspiciously like...

A different image soon flashed in her head. It was her and that boy, sitting in a cafeteria, eating and laughing. Another image. It was her, hugging the boy and crying into his shoulder. Another image. Her and the boy talking in class. Another. Her and the boy exchanging Hearth's Warming gifts. Another. Her and the boy dancing to beautiful music. Another. Her and the boy kissing. With each image, a feeling of familiarity poured into Derpy. She had seen these scenes before, and whatever the case, the boy in the shots was the cause of her happy thoughts. Another image shifted as a slightly sadder scene came up. It was her, hugging that boy in a hospital bed, and she was crying. As Derpy began to wonder why this was a happy moment, she then heard her in the image say,

"I love you Silver Lining."

At that statement, the name started to echo in Derpy's mind. Slowly but surely, the memories started to flow back. Everything she had went through, every good, every bad, every loving memory; returning. And one name in particular rang out in Derpy's memory, a name that turned out to be her happy thought.

Silver Lining.

As Derpy snapped back into what was happening, she saw that the small boy had disappeared. As she got up and looked around, she looked over to her side and saw something that made her smile. There was Silver, fully grown, smiling, and waving for Derpy. Within a flash, Derpy was wrapped around Silver's body, enjoying the warm embrace once again. As she broke the hug, the two looked into each other's eyes with a warm smile.

"Hi Derpy," Silver said softly. "It seems you are back to normal." Before Derpy could wonder what he meant by that, she looked down at herself and realized that she was back to her original age. "But I can also tell that something's troubling you."

"Oh Silver," Derpy sighed as she hugged him again. "I don't know what to do! I'm supposed to go back to school on Monday, but how can I? How can I go back out there and continue being the light-hearted girl I was without you around? I...I feel so alone!" Silver broke the hug and looked into Derpy's tear-filled eyes.

"You're never alone Derpy!" he calmly responded. "Do you remember what I told you? Though I may not be with you physically, it doesn't mean I'm not with you spiritually. As long as you remember me, I will always be with you in your heart. And as for the going back to school, you can still make a difference out there Derpy! You can go back with your head held high, and bring joy to others!"

"But HOW?" Derpy asked.

Silver chuckled as he continued, "Derpy, you have a very special gift. A gift to make others smile just by being you. You've had this gift long before I can around. Your bubbly attitude and optimistic behavior towards your 'quirky' antics make others smile. Just because I'm not there doesn't mean you have to stop. There will always be people who have depression in their lives. People who have been to Hell and back with what they went through, and some of them on the verge of suicide. All they need is a little 'bubbly' in their life. Who better to give the bubbly than someone who has been there before? That's what I did for you right? My time may be up, but your time," Silver lifted Derpy's chin and wiped away her tears, "is just beginning! Be an inspiration to the people around you! Don't let depression get you down. Remember, you are in control. If you want to be positive, and shout it out loud and proclaim it to the world!"

Derpy, glued to what he was saying, nodded and wiped another tear from her eye.

"And don't let me passing stop you from living your life!" Silver continued. "Make more friends, hang out, find yourself a great guy who loves you for you! There IS one out there Derpy. You'll find him."

More tears came to Derpy's eyes as she nodded again. "Alright. I will," she said, "but just know that I will always love you Silver!"

"And I you Derpy," he responded with a smile, "and don't ever forget; You are NEVER alone!"

"He's right," a feminine voice calmly said.

Derpy jumped at the voice and looked around. She swore that she had heard that voice before. Finally, she caught sight of the source, and Derpy started to cry all over again. Blueberry Muffin, Derpy's mom, was smiling beside her.

"MOM!" Derpy screamed as she embraced her mother. The old feeling of her embrace came back and Derpy couldn't help but cry. "Mom, I'm so sorry! I'm sorry I broke my promise!"

"Derpy dear," Blueberry said calmly. "You didn't break your promise. You just forgot about it for a while, that's all. You still can keep it." She broke the hug and looked Derpy in the eyes, wiping away her tears. "The very first time I held you in my arms, I couldn't help but smile. I knew that my baby was going to grow up into an encouraging young woman, and I was right! Go out there and make a difference Derpy! I'll be with you. Always have been, always will be."

Derpy smiled and dried her eyes. "Thanks mom," she said with a sniffle. Suddenly, everything started to go fuzzy around Derpy, like the image was fading. She looked to her mom and Silver, who were also fading. "What's going on!?"

"Looks like you're waking up," Silver said.

"NO!" Derpy shouted. "Don't leave me!"

"We'll never leave you Derpy!" Blueberry said. "We'll be looking out for you, always!"

"How will I know?" Derpy asked hastily.

"Do you know that moment when the sun is barely peeking out from behind a cloud?" asked Silver as his voice began to fade. Derpy nodded. "The bright line that surrounds the outline of the cloud will be me. Whenever you see it, know that that's me, looking out for you!"

"Alright," Derpy called out, "and I promise, truly promise, that I will not sink back into depression! I WILL be positive! I am NOT ALONE!" Silver and Blueberry smiled as their bodies faded away. And as Derpy began to stir, she heard both Blueberry and Silver whisper,

"I love you."

Derpy's eyes flew open as she sat up in her bed. Her eyes were wide open and her breath was heavy as she looked around her room. Her head was covered with sweat, and the bottom of her eyes felt as if she had just cried a river. After getting a hold of herself, Derpy just sat there in bed, a million thoughts thinking about what she just went through. "If it was a dream," she thought, "then that means it wasn't real. But it FELT so real. What if it was real? No, dreams can't be real...can they? How do I know? How do I know that it wasn't just another dream?" As she sat there thinking, Derpy couldn't help but notice that a stream of sunlight had come through the window. Though this was normal in the morning, she noticed that the beam was not as full as normal days. Curiosity got the better of her as she got out of bed and went over to the window. She peeked out up at the sky, and what she saw made her eyes go wide and her jaw drop.

Outside her window, the sun was just barely peeking out from behind an average-sized cloud. The effect of the sun from behind made the cloud look dark in the middle, but along the outline of the cloud, there was a bright line that traced around the cloud, making the color look...silver. It was a literal silver lining! A smile came across the pegasus-girl's face as a tear filled her eye. It wasn't just an average dream. It actually meant something. Silver WAS looking out for her, and she will NEVER be alone. As Derpy stared at the cloud, a new hope began to build inside of her. A hope for a better future. The optimism was coming back as the depression shrank into nothing. The bubbly attitude started to take over. Derpy now knew what she had to do. She wasn't going to go back to the way things were. She was going to remember the good that came out of her life. She was going to remember that her mom and Silver were both looking out for her.

Derpy decided that Sunday would be used for re-training. Preparing for ANYTHING the world had to offer her, using all the methods her best friend taught her. Things were not going to be the same. As Derpy walked away to prepare, a new positive attitude filling inside of her, all she could think to say was,

"Thanks Silver. I love you too!"


	10. Has a Silver Lining

In a small apartment room not three blocks from the high school, an alarm clock went off. The time on it read 7:00 am as it beeped annoyingly. A tired hand reached over and turned it off as the owner of the hand sat up. Derpy rubbed her eyes, yawned, and stared into open space with a lively look on her face, a look that said, "Time for a new day!" After a nice, hot shower and a blueberry muffin breakfast, Derpy stood in front of the bathroom mirror, brushing her teeth, and humming a happy little jingle. After she finished, she opened the cabinet to put away the paste, and she saw something out of the corner of her eye. A familiar object. A bottle of pills her mother used to take. Derpy took the bottle and looked at it intently. She waited for a negative thought to come up, but nothing did. "Guess I don't need these anymore," Derpy happily thought as she threw the contents away. She then grabbed her bag and flew off for the school.

As she landed on the sidewalk, she happily started towards the doors, when from behind her, a familiar voice called out, "Hello there Derp-face." Derpy took a deep breath as she turned to see Rain Storm, looking cockier than ever before, standing with her groupies to her side.

"Hi Rain," Derpy greeted casually.

"I'm SO sorry to hear about your boyfriend," Rain said, although Derpy could tell that she didn't sound the least bit sorry. In fact, she sounded like she was happy. "He was a nice guy. Gave you hope didn't he?"

"Yeah," Derpy replied, "but he'll always be with me!"

"Yeah yeah sure," Rain said with an annoyed wave of her hand. "In the meantime, while you fantasize about your now 'non-existent' boyfriend, I think I'll just push you back into reality. Where were we before?"

"RIGHT HERE!" a voice shouted out.

Derpy and Rain looked up just in time to see Rainbow Dash land right between the two. People passing by stopped and looked to see what was going on.

"Scram Rainbow Trash," Rain scowled. "This doesn't have to do with you."

"Actually, it does!" Rainbow replied with a growl. "It's ALWAYS been about me! I was just too stupid to do anything about it, but now, I know it's YOU who needs a check back into reality!" As she told Rain off, others gathered around the three pegasus-girls and watched with anticipation. "You have been putting Derpy down for as long as I can remember, and quite frankly, I've had enough! It's bad enough that you do it without any remorse, but to do it while making fun of Silver's death? That's where I draw the line! You think you're SO awesome because you're richer than anyone in school? Well, you're not!"

Before Rain could retort, Blossomforth moved from the crowd to beside Rainbow. "Yeah! You build yourself up so much, but you think you're so cool for bringing others down because they're different. Derpy's more of a person than you'll EVER be!"

"That's right!" Thunderlane chimed in, pushing his way to join Blossom. "If you really get a thrill about putting people down and making them feel like crap, then YOU need help!"

At that point, Fluttershy worked her way to the front as well. This surprised everyone, seeing how Fluttershy was know to be quite bashful in front of crowds, but nevertheless, she stood there with here head held high and said, "Derpy deserves way more respect! She and Silver have helped so many feel good about themselves! What have YOU ever done? You're not worthy of your good looks!" As Fluttershy finished, the crowd of students surrounding them started applauding and calling Rain out. Rain looked from side to side and noticed that her groupies had sunk back into the crowd, too embarrassed to be seen with her. After what seemed like a minute of applause, all Rain could say was,

"Out of my way losers!" And in a huff, she was gone. As the crowd finished applauding for the defeat of Rain Storm, everyone looked to Derpy, who was wearing a big smile.

"Thanks guys," Derpy said softly.

"No. Thank YOU Derpy," Blossom said. "You and Silver helped us realized that NOONE deserves to be alone, no matter how different they are."

"You gave us hope," Fluttershy said. "You made us feel so good about being ourselves, while all Rain did was bring us down."

"We should've defended you a long time ago," Thunderlane continued. "We were just worried about ruining our own reputations, but now we realize that a reputation means nothing if you don't show kindness. Silver taught me that."

"He taught ALL of us that," Rainbow added as the others nodded. "Could you ever forgive us Derpy?"

"Of course I can," Derpy replied with a big smile. The others smiled back as the group got into a big group hug.

Suddenly, someone in the crowed shouted, "LET'S HEAR IT FOR DERPY!"

At that moment, an enormous applause broke out as everyone looked to Derpy and cheered. Derpy blushed greatly, and soon felt herself being lifted up by her new close friends, who started chanting, "Derpy! Derpy! Derpy!" Soon, the whole crowd was chanting it as they jumped and cheered, clapping as loud as they could. Derpy couldn't help but start to laugh, as tears of joy started to fill her eyes. Things weren't the same as before! Silver was right. She really DID have the gift to change others for the good! If the crowd of new friends around her proved anything, it was that Derpy was an inspiration to everyone she came in contact with. Just like Silver was a shining ray of hope and happiness for her, she would be a shining ray to all others who she met and would meet in the future.

Things were never the same for Derpy. She went through the rest of high school with more happiness and quirkiness than she did her entire life. Rain never did bother her, or anyone else, again. She just would stare with what seemed to be a combination of jealousy and sorrow at Derpy who was always laughing and joking with others. The old Derpy had completely disintegrated, and the new lovable Derpy had been born anew, walking down the halls and greeting everyone with a smile. Even the clumsiness didn't bother Derpy anymore. Whenever she would trip, no one laughed at her. Their first reaction was to make sure that she was alright, and when she started laughing, everyone started laughing, but WITH her. And she would always finish with her new catchphrase, "I just don't know what went wrong." As the year winded down, the student awards were handed out, and, to Derpy's surprise, she won TWO awards. The first was the "Most Likely to Brighten Your Day" award, and the second was "Student of the Year" award. The applause was deafening as Derpy walked up on stage to claim them, only to surprise everyone with asking if the name on the "Most Likely to Brighten Your Day" award was changed to Silver Lining. Derpy wouldn't have been there if it weren't for him, and she made a promise to share the award, so it seemed only fair that HE get the award that he deserved.

Before the students knew it, graduation had come! Students, one by one, would come up and get their diplomas, and Derpy was no exception. She didn't become Valedictorian, but her grades had improved so much that she was in the top 20s in Honor Roll. And even though she wasn't implied to, Derpy was asked to give a little speech, telling what she went through and to encourage others. Derpy happily obliged. She told about where she got her start, how she fell into depression, and meeting Silver. She told of his encouraging attitude and how it helped her fight her own struggles. She said that even though he was dead, he would always be with her, and encouraged everyone to live life counting it as joy and looking for the bright side. She then concluded the speech by doing something no one had ever thought she would do.

She forgave Rain.

It took everyone by surprise. When she first said Rain's name, everyone thought that she would lash out at her for all that she did, and even though it seemed to start out that way, with Derpy bringing up all she did to her, she happily concluded with, "I forgive you." Not only that, she also thanked Rain, because she wouldn't have been so close to Silver without her. Rain sat there, absolutely stunned, knowing that she didn't deserved any thanks or forgiveness. It did something to her. After the ceremony, Rain confronted Derpy and SINCERELY and FINALLY apologized for all she put Derpy through. She held out a hand to shake, but Derpy had other ideas. She flung her arms around Rain and hugged her tight. Everyone looked on in amazement as Rain hugged her back and started to cry. Rain moved to Manehattan after that day due to her new job, and while the two never talked again, they left on a pretty good note, and that's all that mattered.

As for Derpy, she was able to get a job as well after school. She had read in the paper of a post office needing a mail carrier for Ponyville. It was close to home, and the job required contact with people, so how could she NOT take the job? Derpy became the official mail carrier of Ponyville, and delivered a smile and compliment with every package and letter. Everyone who Derpy delivered for absolutely adored her and her bubbly attitude. She became such a hit, that Derpy was promoted to head carrier. She even came up with a name and logo for her delivery service; Derpy Mare Mail! The logo was a picture of a pegasus-horse with a letter in the back and a mail hat on. Derpy was able to deliver anything from a package to a piano (although she did have a little trouble with the piano, but that's a different story). Derpy enjoyed the job to the fullest, and met so many new faces and friends. One particular visit was specifically memorable to Derpy.

It was just another sunny day as she carried her bag to the next house. As she arrived at the residence, she noticed that there was a lot of techno-based wires connected around the house. Though a little skeptical at first, Derpy just shrugged it off and happily knocked on the door. It took about two minutes before a tall man opened the door. He was quite a skinny man, but had a rather handsome face. He had brown hair and was wearing a matching brown coat with a picture of an hourglass on the side pocket. When he spoke, Derpy noticed a hint of a British accent in his voice.

"Hello?" answered the man.

"Howdy sir!" Derpy replied happily as she pulled out a rectangle box wrapped in brown paper. "I have a package for you!"

"Oh brilliant," the man said excitedly as he took the package. "This must be the part I've been looking for my Tardi-er...for my...project. Thank you very much." The man then reached in his pocket and pulled out a five dollar bill, handing it to Derpy.

"No thanks," Derpy declined happily. "I don't really accept tips. Your smile is enough for me!" As Derpy waved good-bye she started to walk back, but was quickly thrown off balance by a trash can she ran into. The man quickly ran out and helped her up.

"Goodness me!" he said. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Derpy said as she stood up. "Sometimes, I just don't know what went wrong."

"Well as long as you're alri-" The man stopped and looked at Derpy with his mouth still open from mid-sentence.

"What's wrong?" Derpy asked.

"You...have...the most beautiful eyes!" the man softly exclaimed.

Derpy felt herself blush as she smiled. "Oh..well...thank you..." she said with an embarrassed giggle. "I like your...coat!"

"Thank you very much," the man said, still looking at Derpy's eyes. The two stood there for a second, before Derpy snapped into reality and reached out a hand.

"I'm Derpy by the way."

"The name's Whooves," replied the man as he shook her hand with a smile. "Dr. Whooves." Derpy smiled as the two continued to shake each other's hand. She didn't fully realize it yet, but she had a feeling that this one was quite...special!

And that's the story of the lovable mailgirl Derpy! We now cut back to the present as Derpy finished her last delivery to Sugarcube Corner.

"Thanks Derpy!" Pinkie Pie shouted out the window. "Hey! You coming to the party tonight?"

"Got other plans!" Derpy shouted back. "I'm going out to dinner with Whooves!"

"Have fun!" Pinkie shouted as she pulled her head back in. Derpy smiled as she turned and started back home. As she flew, she hummed a catch little tune and looked up to enjoy the sky. The weather was nice, a few clouds here and there, but still nice weather. As Derpy continued to fly, she couldn't help but notice that the sun was being blocked out by an average-sized cloud. She stopped to look as the cloud slowly making its way south. And then, as the cloud moved a little more, the sun peeked out on the top and a brilliant light traced around the outside of the cloud, making the light look...silver. Derpy smiled softly as she felt a tear form in the corner of her eye. He was still looking out for her. All these years, and he was still smiling down on her.

Derpy couldn't help but think of all that she had been through in her life. It was all so much. Some would say it was too much for a normal person to handle. People would sometimes ask Derpy if she could go back in time, would she stop herself from experiencing such depression. Though Derpy had considered it a few times, she would ultimately say no. Sure there were times of depression in her life, like any life, but it was from that depression that a greater Derpy was born. Through trials and turmoil, Derpy was happy of how she turned out, and she wouldn't change that for anything. She had so much to be thankful for, and so many happy thoughts that have filled her head and heart. Sure she still had sad times and grumpy times and grieving times, but she remembered to count it all as joy, and look to a brighter side, and she never forgot that she was never alone.

As the years went by, Derpy never lost sight of that. She never let anything drag her down completely. Because of what she went through, she remained positive and bubbly with what she did. She knew that there would be more bad times to come her way, but she was ready to face those dark clouds.

For every dark cloud has a Silver Lining.

THE END


End file.
